- Published: January 24, 2012
The numbers are in for California solar installations last year, and the winner is a bit surprising. Neither green-minded San Francisco nor the sprawling Los Angeles took the crown.
Let’s just say this: With all the solar power pulsing through its grid, San Diego knew what it was doing when it named its football team the Chargers.
Last year, San Diego completed 4,507 solar installations, totaling 36.7 megawatts.
That’s enough to secure San Diego a spot among the top 25 solar producing nations in the world, according to the Environment California Research and Policy Center, which authored the report.
Released on Jan. 24, the report focuses on how far the state has come in terms of solar power.
But it’s not all a giant editorial backrub for the Killer Cali.
The report also mentions that California has much farther to go.
As of 2010, solar power only accounts for a tiny percentage of the state’s total energy mix
"Ten years ago, solar panels atop roofs were a rarity," the report said. "Today, solar is taking hold in cities across the state, from coastal metropolises to agricultural and industrial hubs in the Central Valley. In the past two years alone, the solar industry has installed more than 5,000 kilowatts of solar power in each of 10 different California cities."
San Diego managed to install almost 500 more solar projects than its runner up, Los Angeles, which completed 36.2 MW of solar last year. San Jose came in third with 31 MW.