Channel Islands National Park consists of five islands located off the coast of Southern California. Their isolation has protected them from development, provided refuge for many endemic species and challenges park management in providing energy at several offshore locations.

In the mid 1970's park staff began using solar energy to provide power for communications at remote field stations. In 1983 a large photovoltaic system was installed on Anacapa Island to reduce the use of diesel generation to provide power. Since then alternative energy systems became the standard on the islands and currently the park has 76 such systems in place.

Annually the use of renewable energy has been eliminated or precluded the use of over 28,000 gallons of diesel fuel used for generation on the islands. This has resulted in annual emission savings of -
333 Tons of Carbon Dioxide.
16,000 Pounds of Nitrous-Oxides.
616 Pounds of Total Suspended Particulates (TSP)
1372 Pounds of Hydrocarbons.
800 Pounds of Sulfur Dioxides.
2,300 Pounds of Carbon Monoxide.
And don't forget the motor oil use and generation of hazardous waste.

As the maintenance supervisor for the park, I have installed and/or been involved with the majority of the renewable energy systems in the park. The challanges in managing load creep, system operations and maintenance and upgrades have kept me on my toes for almost thirty years.

Channel Islands National Park http://www.nps.gov/chis

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Last Update 02-23-2011