No-cost solar system for Bayview family

To commemorate Earth Day, volunteers from a local bank’s environmental finance team joined nonprofit GRID Alternatives Bay Area staff to install a 4.1 kW solar system for a low-income family in the Bayview neighborhood on Saturday, April 20.

The Rodriguez family has lived in their home for 15 years. Javier is not working due to a disability, and Gabriela works as a counselor at Abraham Lincoln High School.

The Rodriguez family can expect to save $20,950 on their electricity bills over the life of the system. The energy savings is equivalent to planting 1,116 trees and preventing the emission of 48 tons of greenhouse gasses.

Given the high cost of living of San Francisco, the Rodriguez family was very happy and grateful for the new solar panels. “I am looking forward to saving money on my electricity bill while at the same time doing our part for the environment,” said Gabriela Rodriguez.

“We love getting to be out in the community,” said Dani Mahrer, GRID Bay Area Partnerships coordinator. “To have employees generously volunteering their time, in addition to the philanthropic support our partners provide for our programming, is really wonderful to see.”

The solar installation is made possible in part by funding from a bank and team member volunteerism.

About GRID Alternatives Bay Area

GRID Alternatives Bay Area is an affiliate of GRID Alternatives, a national leader in making clean, affordable solar power and solar jobs accessible to low-income communities and communities of color. Using a unique, people-first model, GRID Bay Area develops and implements solar projects that serve qualifying households and affordable housing providers, while providing hands-on job training. GRID Bay Area has installed solar for more than 1,893 families to-date and helped households and housing providers save $54 million in lifetime electricity costs, while training over 7,289 people. For more information, visit www.gridalternatives.org/bayarea.