The Gila River Indian Community has signed a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to install solar panels on its canals.
This means the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will begin construction on the first phase of the Pima Maricopa Renewable Energy Irrigation Pilot Project south of Phoenix, Arizona.
The pilot project is part of a broader effort by the Biden administration and the Bureau of Reclamation to implement solutions to the drought crisis threatening the Colorado River Basin.
The objective is to generate clean energy and save water in the trunk canal. The Gila River Indian Community is home to the Aquimel O'otam (Pima) and Pee-Posh (Maricopa) tribes.
The $6.744 million pilot project is expected to produce 1 megawatt (MW) of renewable energy to offset the energy needs and costs of tribal farmers. Completion is expected in 2025.
The first phase will cover approximately 1,000 feet of the 10-story freeway channel and the community has already begun Phase II. Development of feasibility studies and phase design work. Phase II is expected to begin next month. The Gila River Indian Community has more than 150,000 canals that can be covered with solar panels.
This is the second pilot project in the United States to install solar panels on canals. Project Nexus is a $20 million pilot project for California's Turlock Irrigation District that began in October 2022 and is expected to be completed in 2024.
Canal solar panels
already installedin India
will reduce evaporation and reduce water consumption. water for electricity generation.Photo: "File: Gila River Indian Community, Akimel O'odham, Sacaton, Arizona, USA, One Spring Morning - Wildland Firefighter Aptitude Test 2011 - panoramio.jpg" by Chris English, licensed under CC BY -SA 3.0.
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