Memorandum

City of Lawrence

Sustainability Coordinator, Public Works

TO:	David L. Corliss, Diane Stoddard, Jonathan Douglass
FROM:	Eileen Horn
CC:	Matt Bond, Chuck Soules
Date:	May 17, 2011
RE:	EPA Re-Powering America Technical Assistance – Farmland property

The EPA is encouraging renewable energy development on current and formerly contaminated land and mine sites.  The program “Repowering America’s Lands” offers technical assistance and evaluations of previously-contaminated properties.

This evaluation will be in the form of a feasibility study conducted by the Department of Energy National Renewable Energy Laboratory that will determine the best renewable energy technology for the site, the optimal location for placement of the renewable energy technology, potential energy generating capacity, the return on the investment, and the economic feasibility of the renewable energy projects. 

 Renewable energy types that will be considered are Solar Photovoltaic (PV), concentrated solar power (CSP), wind, biorefinery (from wood or crop waste), biopower (from wood or crop waste), and geothermal.

This technical assistance is valued at $50,000.  There is no match required and no financial commitment on behalf of the City.  The only requirement is that the City provide representatives to work with the NREL technical assistance team during the pre and post-analysis phases of the project.

This feasibility analysis will guide the future development and remediation of the Farmland site, allowing the City to market the site’s capacity for renewable energy generation as an attractive feature for commercial and industrial development.

Re-Powering America’s Land:  Request for Applications:  http://www.epa.gov/oswercpa/docs/repowering_epa_nrel_2011_rfa.pdf

Action Requested:  Staff requests the City Commission authorize staff to apply for an EPA Re-Powering Feasibility Study.