MERCED COUNTY, Calif. (KMJ/KFSN) — Project Nexus: California’s first solar-covered canals.
The initiative that’s been years in the making is now generating electricity while conserving the state’s water supply.
The solar panels sit over Turlock Irrigation District canals in Central California.
“This location is about 1,400 linear feet, and we have two different directions. The solar panels are facing south in one direction and west in the other, so we’re able to figure out what site generates the most power,” director of external affairs for Turlock Irrigation District Josh Weimer explained.
The project is funded by the state and is a public-private-academic partnership between Turlock Irrigation District, Solar AquaGrid, UC Merced and the California Department of Water Resources.
Project Nexus stems from a 2021 research project by UC Merced alumni and project scientist, Brandi McKuin.
Her study found that covering canals with solar panels reduces evaporation while generating power – and brings other benefits.
“The shade also limits the light available for photosynthesis, which means less aquatic weed growth and can improve water quality, reduce canal maintenance. It also saves land; we can avoid taking our prime farmland out of production,” McKuin explained.
While the pilot project started small, the vision has always been much larger.
The UC Merced study estimated that covering all 4,000 miles of California’s exposed canals with solar panels like these could supply enough electricity and conserve enough water to supply 2 million homes each year. But not all canals can be covered.
“That’s one of the things we are trying to learn from this study,” McKuin said. “We’d like to validate the results of our study but also learn by a scale up analysis where it makes sense to put the solar panels and where it doesn’t make sense.”
The project uses a variety of tools to study just how much water can be saved – and how much electricity can be generated.
“We estimate it’s about 1.3 gigawatt hours annually at this site,” McKuin explained.
All that’s generated stays within the district.
“This is truly a pilot project for us to figure out if this is something that we should be looking at other sites and other locations throughout the TID service area,” Weimer said.
Those involved in the initiative hope it’s the first of many like this to come – with the potential to provide a brighter future through renewable energy.
