San Miguel is going GREEN, and you can too! The California Center for Sustainable Energy is helping San Diego County residents take advantage of a special pilot project. For a limited time, County residents can get cash back and a federal tax credit for installing a solar water heating system. To learn more and download an application, please click on the link to the CCSE web site www.swh.energycenter.org. To help draw attention to CCSE’s Solar Water Heating Pilot Program, www.swh.energycenter.org. Solar Depot www.solardepot.com and Performance Solar Inc. www.performancesolar.com joined forces to install a free state-of-the-art solar water heating system. San Miguel Fire Chief Augie Ghio said, “This is a win-win-win situation. San Miguel gets a chance to go green, we save taxpayers thousands of dollars and save the planet valuable resources. We are honored to be part of a program that will help make all of San Diego County green.”  To view the Solar Water Heating Pilot Program (SWHPP) Commercial Click on the link play button below.

 As firefighters, people look up to us as role models, setting positive trends that can shape the character of our communities. This is why our team at the San Miguel Fire District installed a solar water heating system (SWH) at Station 22, a move that will save thousands of taxpayer dollars and blaze a green trail for San Diego’s sustainable energy
future.

 Station 22, in Rancho San Diego, is the first firehouse to take part in the Solar Water Heating Pilot Program (SWHPP), a unique incentive program offered only in the greater San Diego region. The new solar water heating system will cut Station 22’s natural gas use by
nearly 35 percent, saving taxpayers’ money and moving San Diego toward a sustainable and
renewable future.

 We chose to install the solar water heating system not only to reduce our carbon footprint and to save taxpayer money, but also to encourage county residents and businesses to take advantage of thousands of dollars in cash incentives, federal tax credits and lower monthly energy bills as part of the SWHPP. The incentive program is being administered the California Center for Sustainable Energy (CCSE), a San Diego non-profit, and funded by the California Public Utilities Commission as part of a major effort to offset California’s greenhouse gas emissions.

 San Miguel Fire Chief Augie Ghio said, “Thanks to the help of CCSE and our new solar water heating system, we can save thousands of taxpayer dollars and reduce our carbon emissions.” Chief Ghio continued and stated, “We are attempting to inspire all San Diegans to install solar water heating systems with the help of incentives provided by CCSE’s Solar Water Heating Pilot Program.”

 In addition to CCSE, we would like to thank Solar Depot and Performance Solar who donated the SWH system and contracting services needed for the Station 22 installation. If it wasn’t for their generosity and commitment to a sustainable San Diego, the San Miguel Fire District solar water heating system would not be possible.

 We are strongly encouraging other fire districts, residents and businesses from all over the county to take advantage of the cash incentives and federal tax credits provided by CCSE’s Solar Water Heating Pilot Program. The Program is the predecessor to a potential $250 million statewide program, which is contingent on the outcome from the pilot.