Solar Communities

Invitation to become a Solar Community

West Moberly Dawson Creek Kelowna District of North Vancouver Saanich Tofino

Local governments and First Nations are invited to submit an application to become a Solar Community under the SolarBC Program (SolarBC). A grant of $5000 will be provided for 6 communities selected through this application process.

The Solar Communities project is a part of the SolarBC Program, which has a goal of transforming the market for solar hot water (SHW) systems in B.C. The SolarBC program is described in the attached backgrounder.

The goal of this invitation is to add six Solar Communities to the nine Solar Communities that are in place: Dawson Creek, Kelowna, Saanich, Tofino, T’Sou-ke First Nation, District of North Vancouver, Vancouver, West Moberly First Nation and Whistler.

Solar Communities will:

  • Act as flagship communities and provide leadership to community members;
  • Help to develop means to remove barriers to solar hot water installations;
  • Help to promote and raise awareness of SolarBC to community members; and
  • Provide visible solar demonstration projects.

Apply To Be A Solar Community

Applications will be assessed and selection of Solar Communities will be determined according to the following criteria:

  • Solar targets, actions and initiatives proposed; Innovation in the targets, actions and policy/planning/leadership measures proposed;
  • Intention to apply for grants to help implement the solar hot water initiatives;
  • Commitment of resources to achieve the solar hot water initiatives; Demonstrated commitment and past implementation of solar initiatives in the community; and
  • Applicability of initiatives in other communities.

Please fill out the attached form indicating the initiatives that will be implemented by the community before April 1, 2011 and email it to nharris@solarbc.ca

The deadline for applications is March 31, 2010.

Further Reading

SolarBC Has Currenlty Established 9 Solar Communities

These communities have taken a leadership role in developing the market for Solar Hot Water and raising awareness of SolarBC

The SolarBC Communities project is a part of the SolarBC Program, which has a goal of transforming the market for solar hot water systems in B.C. We are providing up to $20,000, plus assistance for marketing, training and solar policy development to our selected 9 communities: Dawson Creek, Kelowna, North Vancouver, Saanich, Tofino, T'Sou-ke First Nations, Vancouver Whistler and West Moberley First Nations.

SolarBC is proud to work alongside these exemplary communities and excited to develop our relationship with them over the next three years!

A total of 19 municipalities and First Nations applied to be a SolarBC community, including seven First Nations, one joint municipal/First Nations and 11 municipal applications.

The selection criteria was based on multiple factors that included, solar targets, actions and initiatives proposed, intention to apply for other grants to help implement the solar hot water initiatives, participation in Community Action on Energy and Emissions and demonstrated commitment and past implementation of solar initiatives in the community. The selection committee members included: Gary Hamer (B.C. Hydro), Laura Porcher (Community Energy Association) and Nitya Harris (SolarBC).

Please note: Due to the overwhelming response for SolarBC Community Status, there will be a separate selection process aimed specifically at First Nations Communities. Please keep visiting our site for more information on this process as it happens over the next several months. All First Nations Communities that have applied for SolarBC Community status, will be included in this new selection process.

Please explore these pages and find out more about solar hot water initiatives in your Solar Community.

For more information, the U.S. Department of Energy developed this comprehensive resource guide to assist local governments and stakeholders in building sustainable local solar markets.

The guide introduces a range of policy and program options that have been successfully field tested in cities around the country.

The guide describes each policy or program, followed by more information on:

  • Benefits: Identifies benefits from implementing the policy or program.
  • Implementation Tips and Options: Outlines various tips and options for designing and implementing the policy or program.
  • Examples: Highlights experiences from communities that have successfully implemented the policy or program.
  • Additional References and Resources: Lists additional reports, references, and tools that offer more information on the topic, where applicable.