Solar Moonshot Program Grantee

"While poor air quality is a constant across Los Angeles, low-income neighborhoods are disproportionately affected by the negative consequences of environmental pollution. Wilmington is a leading example of an environmentally disadvantaged community - one where residents are burdened with the devastating health and environmental consequences of Los Angeles’ fossil fuel industry, but lack the necessary resources to access renewable energy. This innovative project showcases the promise of clean energy technologies as alternatives to the fossil fuel development that the elderly residents of Wilmington Senior Center have directly suffered from for decades, and has the potential to improve their environmental and physical health and transform their quality of life. The project addresses major concerns faced by the senior citizen community in Wilmington such as the impact of rolling blackouts on the health of the seniors. In the event of a blackout, the senior citizens face significant and potentially fatal health and safety consequences without the ability to power medical equipment, refrigerate medicine, or stay cool during extreme heat days. A solar and energy storage system will transform WSC into a local resiliency center and provide the community potentially life saving security against blackouts. Additionally, the savings will reduce the cost of powering things like air conditioning, appliances, and computers, so that we can invest more in the direct services it provides to our community."