The Salt Palace Convention Center hosts the largest solar installation in the state of Utah and nearly doubling the state’s current solar capacity. The 1.65 megawatt photovoltaic rooftop solar array provides the convention center with up to 17% of its energy. Savings to the County over the 25-35 year useful life of the system was $8.5 million. As a result of the clean solar energy system, an estimated 86 million pounds of CO2 (2,234 tons per year) was avoided, and over 26 million gallons of water used in association with coal-fired electricity were saved.
The County has taken steps to cement the educational opportunities on-site with an appropriation to design and build a viewing platform for visitors, students and members of the public to witness the power generation of a rooftop solar array. Bella Energy has pledged to support the ongoing educational curriculum at Salt Lake Community College and Green Academy which provides ongoing for-credit programs in Energy Management and Solar Installation – one of only three programs of its kind in a public university setting in the U.S.