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Farm
Location

Construction
Start-Up

Construction
Progress

Farm Siting

Air Stripping
Towers

UV Reactors

Ion Exchange
Vessels

Clarifiers
and FBRs

Cleanup Objectives: Treat ground water contaminated by trichloroethylene, perchlorate and other contaminants caused by past manufacturing of rocket engines and propellants

Green Remediation Strategy: Use solar energy to partially meet power requirements of a remediation system currently extracting more than 20 million gallons of ground water each day for ex situ treatment

• Formed a public/private partnership among Aerojet, Solar Power, Inc., and the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) to evaluate feasibility of developing a solar energy production system that could provide electricity for extensive, long-term pump-and-treat operations including ultraviolet/oxidation, ion exchange, and air stripping technologies
• Designed a 3.5-MW solar energy farm consisting of more than 18,000 200-watt, silicon-celled photovoltaic (PV) panels covering 20 acres of the Aerojet Superfund site, following agreement by regulators, the local utility, and other stakeholders
• Designed the solar energy system to maximize power output through use of 12 single-axis trackers aligned with the sun's daily east-west arc
• Minimized disruption of indigenous flora and fauna re-population after construction through use of solar energy system installation techniques relying on ground-mounted PV panels supported by posts instead of structures with concrete footing

Results:

• Completing construction of the solar farm within six months, following a three-month design period that culminated in construction kick-off in June 2009
• Anticipated to meet approximately 20% of the remediation system's electricity demand through solar energy integration
• Capitalized on approximately $15 million in incentives provided by SMUD
• Anticipated to achieve more than $10 million in electricity savings over the cleanup project's 25-year life
• Expected to avoid 4,200 tons of carbon dioxide, 16.7 tons of sulfur dioxide, and 6.5 tons of nitrogen oxide emissions during the first year of solar energy production when compared to full use of electricity from fossil-fueled facilities, offsetting emissions equivalent to approximately 8.27 million car miles driven
• Beneficially re-using onsite land that sat idle for over 50 years, while allowing continued use of adjacent Aerojet property for rocket engine testing

Property End Use: Ongoing aerospace equipment manufacturing

Point of Contact: Kevin Mayer, U.S. EPA Region 9

Update: October 2009

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