Back in 2022, Turlock Irrigation District (TID) announced that they received state funding for the nation's first, Project Nexus, a pilot project to build solar panel canopies over a portion of TID’s existing canals to operate and research a truly innovative, multi-benefit, water-energy nexus project that can further California’s push toward water and climate resiliency.
The project was scheduled for completion by 2024 at 2 locations within the TID territory, but now has a completion date of 2025. Solar AquaGrid, a Bay Area development firm, was hired as project developers and program managers for the project, under the Department of Water Resources administration and guidance.
According to the statement, these pilot projects will:
Demonstrate the feasibility of installing solar panels over canals
Reduce water evaporation
Improve water quality
Provide renewable power generation
Demonstrate scalability
Earlier this week Governor Gavin Newsom, announced federal funding for another solar over canals pilot project outside of Los Banos, California.
“California is pioneering innovations to tackle our biggest challenges, and here in the Central Valley we’re addressing two big challenges at the same time – generating clean electricity and conserving water" said Newsom. "Companies are coming to California because we’re embracing innovation and we have the talent and infrastructure to foster new technologies that will solve not only California’s, but the world’s, biggest challenges.”
UC Merced will study the Turlock project to determine how much clean energy could be generated, how much water could be conserved, and analyze how this could be scaled statewide. Initial findings show that if these projects are scaled statewide they would:
Save California over 60 billion gallons of water every year – enough for 2 million people
Generate 13 gigawatts of clean power – more than half the projected new solar capacity needed by 2030 to meet the state’s decarbonization goals
