Laserfiche WebLink
49 <br />Solar Access <br />The Metropolitan Land Planning Act requires comprehensive plans for Metropolitan Area communities to <br />contain an element related to the protection and development of access to direct sunlight for solar energy <br />systems.As a result,the following solar resource-related information must be included in Little Canada’s 2040 <br />Comprehensive Plan update: <br />1.A map which illustrates the City’s gross solar potential. <br />2.A calculation of the City’s solar resources. <br />3.A policy (or policies) which relate to the development of access to direct sunlight for solar energy systems. <br />4.Strategies to be applied to implement established solar resource policies. <br />Solar Potential <br />The following map,provided by the Metropolitan Council,shows the gross solar potential for Little Canada. <br />The map,developed by the University of Minnesota,illustrates annual sun energy dispersed throughout the <br />city with “high end:potential areas shown in yellow,and areas having “low end”in black.This information is <br />useful in predicting the productivity of solar installations.According to the Metropolitan Council,the primary <br />issue in the consideration of solar energy installations is intermittent shading due to nearby structures and <br />trees. Areas identified as having “high end” potential in the City are those with very little tree cover. <br />Solar Resource Calculations <br />Table 13 displays Little Canada’s gross potential and rooftop potential for solar.The gross solar potential and gross <br />solar rooftop potential estimates are based on the Gross Solar Potential map on page 48.These calculations <br />estimate the total potential resource before removing areas that are unsuitable for solar development.Gross <br />generation potential and gross solar rooftop generation potential estimates how much electricity could be <br />generated using existing solar technology.According to the Metropolitan Council,for most cities,the rooftop <br />generation potential is equivalent to between 30 and 60 percent of a community’s total electric energy <br />consumption.To be noted,there is no minimum amount of solar resource development required for cities in <br />the Metropolitan Area. <br />Table 13: Little Canada’s Gross Solar Potential (Megawatt Hours per Year) <br />Gross Potential <br />(Mwh/yr) <br />Rooftop Potential <br />(Mwh/yr) <br />Gross Generation Poten- <br />tial (Mwh/yr)2 <br />Rooftop Generation <br />Potential (Mwh/yr)2 <br />5,225,776 611,196 522,577 61,119 <br />Metropolitan Council Notes: <br />•In general, a conservative assumption for panel generation is to use 10% efficiency for <br />conversion of total insolation into electric generation. <br />•The rooftop generation potential does not consider ownership, financial barriers or <br />building-specific structural limitations. <br />Source: Metropolitan Council, University of Minnesota U-Spatial