Footprint Project & Rent.Solar Brought Portable Solar Charging Stations To Help Ida Hurricane Victims
Footprint Project, a nonprofit organization based in Minneapolis whose mission is to provide cleaner energy for communities in crisis, recently joined Rent.Solar on a trip to Louisiana to help those hit hardest by Hurricane Ida. The two brought 4 solar trailers and 60 portable charging stations. The mobile solar unit is paired with battery storage to create microgrids that power relief efforts that are currently on the ground. This is awesome!
I actually got to talk with the Footprint team about their work, and that will be published as a followup to this article.
While the whole world is tweeting about what should be done, my brother @RichardBirt9 gets on a plane, drives a truck and installs a solar system in New Orleans with @lightempowered and @FootprintPrjct https://t.co/SG97vzAtaa
— marco krapels (@KrapelsMarco) September 7, 2021
The two companies noted that they were ready to deploy to Louisiana from the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Manchester, Tennessee, which had been suddenly canceled due to Ida. After leaving Louisiana, the storm made its way north and Tennessee was one of several states in its path.
Will Heegaard, Operations Director at Footprint Project, said, “We were tracking Ida while loading into Bonnaroo and immediately began strategizing about how we could deploy while still fulfilling our festival contract.” Both had programming and rental contracts with Bonnaroo this year and the event announced the cancellation just two days after Ida made landfall at Port Fourchon.
The solar and battery systems used were manufactured by Tesla. Richard Birt, who joined Footprint Project and Light Empowered on the trip, pointed out that these systems were a matter of life and death for communities in New Orleans. I can verify this, as I, too, was without power. Although it was for only three days, 140°F inside your home is nothing to play with. In my case, I was fortunate to have clean running water. Many in South Louisiana don’t have access to clean water and were told it would be weeks before they’d get power back. These solar systems being brought down will save lives.
“While it’s incredibly unfortunate for everyone involved that the festival couldn’t go on this year, the ability to get down to communities in need of critical power with such speed and agility is the real reason we do this work,” said Heegaard. Footprint has been in New Orleans since Friday, September 3, and has powered up the New Orleans Veterans of Foreign Wars, which is distributing 500 meals per day to the community.
It was an honor to manage comms for @FootprintPrjct Over #LaborDay weekend while @FootprintPrjct was busy in the field doing the heavy lifting. #BuildBackGreener pic.twitter.com/95eYPTl6MU
— Ethan Lipman (@etlipman) September 7, 2021
It’s also powered up Imagine Water Works, which leads the Mutual Aid Response Group of Louisiana. The organization is currently building a list of sites that need the power to be triaged and has prioritized that list based on need service. It’s also sourcing additional solar equipment from industry partners around the country.
Footprint Project will deploy the mobile microgrids through the area. Community centers, medical centers, and fire stations will benefit from the microgrids. Community partners have identified parking lots and street corners as high need areas for cell phone charging, medical and mobility devices, and battery shares.
“We’re incredibly grateful to all our partners and supporters for helping us build back greener in Louisiana,” said Heegaard. In a video that is part of their gallery of images and video, Heegaard explained what type of solar panels they were using for Imagine Water Works.
He explained that this was the second solar generator setup and that the two 50-watt portable solar panels were identical to another setup used for a chest freezer. It included a small, 20-inch charge controller that was donated by Zamp Solar. The charge controller, plugged into the solar panels, runs power to an 830 kWh battery suitcase which was placed in the shade. This system was able to run the command, laptop, and their cell phones that evening. This is just one of the many systems they’ve set up to help the community.
DER Task Force joined the organizations by setting up a fundraiser on GoFundMe with an initial goal of raising $50,000. That has been increased to $75,000, as more than $61,000 has been raised. The funds will enable Footprint Project to deploy the mobile microgrids in New Orleans and the communities hit the hardest by Ida. I’ve donated and I encourage anyone who wants to help to donate as well. SolHomes, Scale Microgrid Solutions, CPower Energy Management, and Brooklyn SolarWorks are just a few companies that have donated to this fundraiser.
When our power was still out, I sat with my neighbors listening to a solar-powered radio that broadcasted Governor Edwards’ press conference. He said that we would get through this and that we need to be good neighbors for one another. That’s something he’s always talking about — being a good neighbor to your fellow citizens. Other states, communities, and organizations are also being good neighbors.
It’s moments like these that give hope for humanity as a whole. Yes, we have bad people who hurt others, but there are good ones who are coming from a place of love and act on those intentions — they seek to make a positive impact and help others. This is what being a good neighbor is all about.
Related story: “The Tesla Community Helped Feed Over 150 Baton Rouge Families Affected By Hurricane Ida“
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This week on Electrek’s Wheel-E podcast, we discuss the most popular news stories from the world of electric bikes and other nontraditional electric vehicles. This time, that includes Tern’s NYC e-bike delivery fleet surpasses 1 million miles, the CPSC has a stark warning about Rad’s e-bike batteries, what parents should know if their kid wants a Sur Ron e-moto, JackRabbit MG Doble review, Strutt’s EV1 electric mobility chair, and more.
The Wheel-E podcast returns every two weeks on Electrek’s YouTube channel, Facebook, Linkedin, and Twitter.
As a reminder, we’ll have an accompanying post, like this one, on the site with an embedded link to the live stream. Head to the YouTube channel to get your questions and comments in.
After the show ends, the video will be archived on YouTube and the audio on all your favorite podcast apps:
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Here are a few of the articles that we will discuss during the Wheel-E podcast today:
Here’s the live stream for today’s episode starting at 9:00 a.m. ET (or the video after 10:00 a.m. ET):
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The Port of Houston took a big step towards electrifying its operations this week, when the stevedores at Houston Terminal deployed the first new SANY electric reach stacker at the major seaside port – and it won’t be the last.
Multinational equipment brand SANY launched its latest 50-ton electric reach stacker earlier this summer. The new machine drew headlines by cleverly pairing gravity and a KERS-style regenerative braking system attacked to its boom to generate electricity as it lowers loads. The tech significantly improved the machine’s operating efficiency and reduced the sort of costs typically associated with charging and downtime.
With the purchase of the new SANY electric reach stacker from local equipment dealer, Equipment Depot, Houston Terminal has begun to do its part to help keep the air and water around America’s busy seaports pollution-free.
“In this market, there’s a shift towards sustainable equipment,” explains Greg Schertz, Sr. National Account Executive at Equipment Depot — a national equipment supplier that sells and services to roughly 85% of US sea ports. “Electric equipment is a growing trend, and it has become more than a conversation point. Actual machines are going into service and are proving their capability.”
Equipment Depot is quick to point out that the national move towards electrification isn’t about regulations. “The bigger picture is that the world has become more of a global market,” says Chad Larson, VP of Heavy Trucks and Port Equipment at Equipment Depot. “(And) in the port industry, there are many relationships and parent companies with ties into Europe and other parts of the world where zero carbon initiatives are more progressive than the US.”
Robert Marshall, General Manager of Houston Terminal, echoes Schertz’ sentiment, “Electric equipment has a much easier, much simpler maintenance program, because basically you’re just maintaining tires.”
SANY electric reach stacker
At its launch in August, SANY said its new 50t reach stacker would be available with a 512 kWh swappable battery pack. That pack isn’t just huge, it’s compatible with the brand’s other electric equipment assets, and can support both DC fast charging when swapping isn’t practical and the grid itself by “plugging in” to the company’s BESS modules when not needed.
Houston Terminal bought the SANY unit with help from a Texas Emissions Reduction Plan (TERP) Grant, part of TERP’s Seaport and Rail Yard Areas Emissions Reduction (SPRY) Program to replace older drayage trucks and equipment at seaports and rail yards. Houston Terminal intends to apply for another TERP grant to buy a second reach stacker in 2026.
SOURCE | IMAGES: Equipment Depot; via AJOT.
If you’re considering going solar, it’s always a good idea to get quotes from a few installers. To make sure you find a trusted, reliable solar installer near you that offers competitive pricing, check out EnergySage, a free service that makes it easy for you to go solar. It has hundreds of pre-vetted solar installers competing for your business, ensuring you get high-quality solutions and save 20-30% compared to going it alone. Plus, it’s free to use, and you won’t get sales calls until you select an installer and share your phone number with them.
Your personalized solar quotes are easy to compare online and you’ll get access to unbiased Energy Advisors to help you every step of the way. Get started here.
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The mining equipment experts at Sandvik have been developing next-generation electric equipment options for years – largely on their own. Now, with a €500 million capital injection from the EIB, the company is ready to get serious about its next-generation machinery.
The European Investment Bank (EIB) is the lending arm of the European Union (EU), and its core mission is to strengthen the global competitiveness, technological innovations, and sustainability initiatives of European companies like Sandvik by providing affordable financing for R&D projects conducted on the continent.
“We have a strong strategic focus on developing solutions that strengthen our technology leadership, and that enhances productivity, safety and sustainability for our customers,” explains Stefan Widing, President and CEO of Sandvik. “The EIB financing supports our R&D initiatives and provides flexibility to our overall funding strategy.”
The €500 million loan has a seven-year term, and will support Sandvik’s efforts to develop new advanced, productive, safe, and (above all) sustainable heavy equipment solutions across the company’s business lines.
Electrek’s Take
We’ve covered Sandvik’s electric equipment several times over the years, from their surface drill rigs to their underground loaders to their quarry- and concrete-focused electric cone plants, and the brand’s commitment to sustainability and operator safety has been commendable. Even the company’s push towards automation and AI, often seen as a corporate tactic to slash labor costs and boost stock prices before the executives bail out with a fat stack of cash fulfill their exit strategies, seems to be genuinely motivated by worker safety in one of the world’s most dangerous environments.
Of course, I said that about Volvo and they’re actively suing California to be able to sell more diesels as aI type this, so what do I know?
SOURCE | IMAGES: Sandvik.
If you’re considering going solar, it’s always a good idea to get quotes from a few installers. To make sure you find a trusted, reliable solar installer near you that offers competitive pricing, check out EnergySage, a free service that makes it easy for you to go solar. It has hundreds of pre-vetted solar installers competing for your business, ensuring you get high-quality solutions and save 20-30% compared to going it alone. Plus, it’s free to use, and you won’t get sales calls until you select an installer and share your phone number with them.
Your personalized solar quotes are easy to compare online and you’ll get access to unbiased Energy Advisors to help you every step of the way. Get started here.
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