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City begins installing solar panels on buildings as part of $1M project

The work will begin in early December and be completed by next spring.
Solar Panels
An example of solar panels that will be installed on three City of Moose Jaw-owned buildings. File photo

The City of Moose Jaw has begun a $1-million initiative to upgrade three municipal buildings with solar panels as part of a project to enhance the city’s energy infrastructure.

The project involves attaching 730 solar panels to Yara Centre, Mosaic Place and the building housing city hall and the Moose Jaw Police Station. These panels will replace a portion of each building’s electricity needs with clean and high-quality power. 

The project also includes installing long-life LED fixtures and bulbs at Yara Centre.

“These four projects showcase the city’s commitment to clean energy projects while reducing our long-term utility costs, which will strengthen Moose Jaw’s resilience in a post-pandemic world,” said Mayor Clive Tolley.

“On behalf of city council, we thank the federal and provincial governments for their contributions to these projects as they likely would have not moved forward without their support.”

City hall estimated that construction would begin in early December, with the work at Yara Centre and city hall/police station to finish in early 2022. Installing solar panels and LED light upgrades at Mosaic Place is scheduled to begin next spring.

The project is expected to increase community resilience by reducing the municipality’s utility bills by roughly $170,000 annually. It is also expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by about 829 tonnes a year.

The federal government will provide $415,120 toward the project and the provincial government will cover $345,899, while the City of Moose Jaw is responsible for covering the remaining $238,981.

“The Government of Saskatchewan is pleased to invest more than $345,000 toward these important infrastructure projects within the City of Moose Jaw,” said Don Morris, minister of Government Relations. 

“These installations and upgrades will provide the City of Moose Jaw and surrounding municipal facilities with energy, demonstrating our government’s commitment to build and strengthen Saskatchewan’s urban and rural communities.” 

Projects such as Moose Jaw’s solar initiative not only help the country reach its emissions-reduction targets, but also enable municipalities to reduce the cost of their electricity consumption, said Dominic LeBlanc, federal minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, Infrastructure and Communities.

“Our government will continue to partner with municipalities, provinces and territories to help communities become more resilient in the face of climate change and lead the transition to a low-carbon economy,” he added.

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