By Lookout Staff

June 25, 2015 -- Santa Monica’s solar initiative, which has helped residents and business owners convert to solar power, has been singled out for praise at the recent U.S. Conference of Mayors, City officials announced Wednesday.

Since 2006, Solar Santa Monica has helped convert homes and businesses to solar power, offering technical help, screening contractors and advising owners on how to navigate complicated regulations and rate structures, City officials said.

“Santa Monica is being recognized because we’ve done more than just study climate change -- we’ve taken action to slow it, and to protect our community from the impacts,” said Mayor Kevin McKeown.

“With less than 1 percent of the City’s solar potential tapped, the City decided to create a program to stimulate installations, to help home and business owners, as well as the college, schools, and all others to invest in solar.”

In its first year of the program, Solar Santa Monica doubled solar capacity in the City, said spokeswoman Debbie Lee.

“Adopting green energy sources like solar power is a key component in Santa Monica's efforts to reduce citywide greenhouse gas emissions,” said Lee.

Santa Monica received the Climate Protection Award in the small cities category during the U.S. Conference of Mayors 83rd annual meeting in San Francisco on June 19, Lee said.

Since the program began, Santa Monica’s solar capacity increased “twelve-fold,” saving enough energy to power more than 1,170 California homes, according to City officials. Because of the program, the City was able to meet its goal this year of reducing greenhouse emissions by 15 percent from 1990 levels, she added.

To date, the program has reduced annual greenhouse emissions by the equivalent of an average car circling the earth 267 times, City officials said.

“We continue to take effective action, playing a leadership role for other cities,” said McKeown. “ We’ve shown that reducing greenhouse gases, conserving water and other resources, and shifting our thinking about what we build and how we live, can all be done -- and must be done -- on the local level.”

The Solar Santa Monica initiative is run by the Ciy’s Office of Sustainability and the Environment.

“We’re excited that this program was recognized by the U.S. Conference of Mayors because it has been wildly successful here in Santa Monica and is a great model for other cities to follow.”

The program “is responsible for increasing the amount of solar energy installations in Santa Monica more than 12-fold and eliminating 2500 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions,” said Dean Kubani, manager of the Office of Sustainability and the Environment.

“It’s a good example of how local governments can kick-start sustainable actions in the community that provide multiple benefits for everyone.”

To learn more about Solar Santa Monica, visit www.solarsantamonica.com.