From: Audrey Ma
To: cityclerk; Gao, Beilei
Subject: Audrey Ma - Comments for MSC Meeting on Tuesday, 4/8 Date: Sunday, April 6, 2025 7:54:25 PM
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Dear Municipal Services Committee,
My name is Audrey Ma and I am a student at Polytechnic School in Pasadena. Our school just installed rooftop solar for our gymnasium and we can already see the fruits of that system.
I read that based on current estimates, PWP will be able to import 88% carbon free energy by 2030. While this is significant and should be commended, it is not 100% carbon free energy. It seems PWP is unable to import more carbon free energy due to the Goodrich bottleneck and I believe this constraint applies to energy from fossil fuels as well.
To make up the last 8-12% I think PWP should really look at rooftop solar like what we have done at my school. Please keep the incentives in place but make the process easier for residents to install rooftop solar. Keeping net metering incentives in place would incentivize residents to make the investment in solar that they may not make otherwise.
PWP could turbocharge rooftop solar with public solar projects (community solar) where the city would own the panels and generate power at a fraction of the cost of fossil fuel energy.
Doing this would allow Pasadena to get ahead of the curve and build battery storage facilities, state of the art micro-grid and smart grid technologies. I believe making these investments now will pay huge dividends down the road. Fossil fuel energy will only go up in price but the fire burning in the sky will always be free. It’s just a matter of how we manage it by making the right investments in infrastructure.
When my school installed solar, it was making an investment in the future. Like my school, Pasadena should invest in a future that will create a better environment for its residents. The
gravy on top is that these investments will save the residents and the city a lot of money as well!
Thank you.
Sincerely,
Audrey Ma
Student at Polytechnic School in Pasadena