$2.3 million for renewable energy headed to rural Oregon business owners

Nearly $2.3 million is headed to rural Oregon business owners.

U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., announced Wednesday that the grant money from the U.S. Department of Agriculture is meant to improve renewable energy and lower energy costs. This is part of the nationwide effort to combat climate change

“We know that the challenge is to electrify everything with renewable energy, and that includes our homes and our businesses and all the rest of our infrastructure,” Merkley said.

The money is getting distributed to businesses who applied for loans and grants through the Rural Energy for America program and it is helping small businesses bolster their solar panel systems and bring down utility bills.

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Here is the full list of recipients, according to Wyden’s office:

• $1,000,000 to install a 4.51 megawatt ground-mounted solar photovoltaic renewable energy system for Verde Light Community Solar LLC in Ontario. The system will 8.066 gigawatt hours of renewable electricity per year, which is enough energy to power 440 homes. The solar array will generate $557,509 in income for the business by selling renewable electricity to Oregonians through the Oregon Community Solar Program.
• $126,756 to install a 108 kilowatt roof mounted solar photovoltaic system on top of a barn at Summit Ace Home and Garden a small business in the rural city of Lebanon. The solar array will replace 100% of the business’s energy use with renewable electricity, reducing its utility bill by $11,863 per year.
• $223,096 to install a 303 kilowatt roof mounted photovoltaic solar system at Dickman Farms Inc. in Silverton. The solar array will replace 97% of the business’s energy use with renewable electricity, reducing its utility bill by $47,840 per year.
• $100,000 to Deschutes Soil and Water Conservation District, Spark Northwest, North Fork John Day River Watershed Council and the Yamhill Soil and Water Conservation District to increase implementation of renewable energy generation by rural small businesses, farms, and agricultural producers throughout the state of Oregon.
• $100,000 to the University of Oregon’s Resource Assistance for Rural Environments AmeriCorps Program to work with area partners to increase implementation of renewable energy generation by rural small businesses, farms, and agricultural producers throughout the state of Oregon.
• $103,805 to install a 95.06 kilowatt roof mounted solar photovoltaic system on top of Columbia Gorge Toyota in The Dalles. The solar array will replace 64% of the business’s energy use with renewable electricity, reducing its utility bill by $6,559 per year.
• $96,384 to install a 125.5 kilowatt roof mounted solar photovoltaic system on top of G&C Farms Inc. in Salem. The solar array will replace 93% of the business’s energy use with renewable electricity, reducing its utility bill by $23,599 per year.
• $53,264 to install a 54.88 kW roof-mounted solar photovoltaic system at Scott Locke Construction Inc., a small business in Estacada. The project annually will save the business $7,535.
• $26,848 to install a 25 kilowatt roof mounted photovoltaic solar system on top of a barn at Campfire Farms LLC in Mulino. The solar array will replace 99% of the business’s energy use with renewable electricity, reducing its utility bill by $3,626 per year.
• $28,273 to install a 15 kilowatt ground mounted photovoltaic solar system for Converging Creeks Farm in Colton. The solar array will replace 87% of the business’s energy use with renewable electricity, reducing its utility bill by $2,164 per year.
• $16,000 to install an 11.88-kilowatt roof-mounted solar PV on top of a barn at Camas Swale Farm Inc in Eugene. The solar array will replace 50% of the business’s energy use with renewable electricity, reducing its utility bill by $1,060 per year.
• $46,744 to install a 44-kilowatt roof-mounted solar photovoltaic system at Prescott Honey Farms LLC in Lebanon. The project annually will save the business $5,262.
• $24,557 to install an irrigation pump and a 46.6-kilowatt  roof mounted photovoltaic solar system on top of a barn at Mueller Farm LLC in Salem. The solar array will replace 62% of the business’s energy use with renewable electricity, reducing its utility bill by $6,253 per year.
• $42,900 to install a 39 kilowatt roof mounted solar photovoltaic system on top of Northwest Seed and Supply Co. in Gaston. The solar array will replace 90% of the business’s energy use with renewable electricity, reducing its utility bill by $7,237 per year.
• $16,490 to install a 25 kilowatt ground-mounted solar photovoltaic system at the edge of an orchard in a field that is currently unused at Elliott Prairie Farm in Woodburn. The solar array will replace 100% of the business’s energy use with renewable electricity, reducing its utility bill by $2,081 per year.
• $20,000 to install a 15.12 kilowatt roof-mounted solar photovoltaic on top of Hot Beaver Presses Inc. in Canby. The solar array will replace 100% of the business’s energy use with renewable electricity, reducing its utility bill by $2,244 per year.
• $16,450 to install a 14.4-kilowatt roof-mounted solar photovoltaic system for the roof of Simple Pulse LLC. The solar array will replace 100% of the business’s energy use with renewable electricity, reducing its utility bill by $1,495 per year.
• $20,000 to help La Creole Orchards purchase and install a 7.6 kilowatt ground-mounted solar photovoltaic system. The solar array will replace 100% of the business’s energy use with renewable electricity, reducing its utility bill by $3,544 per year.
• $16,858 to help Rivers Edge Winery purchase and install an 8.6 kilowatt  roof-mounted solar photovoltaic system on top of an existing warehouse and office on their property. The solar array will replace 92% of the business’s energy use with renewable electricity, reducing its utility bill by $879 per year.
• $10,423 to help Mouse Works LLC purchase and install an 8.7 kilowatt roof-mount solar photovoltaic system on top of their building in Toledo. The solar array will replace 57% of the business’s energy use with renewable electricity, reducing its utility bill by $748 per year.
• $14,941 to help Reimer Nursery LLC purchase and install a 12.8 kilowatt  roof-mounted solar photovoltaic on top of their existing barn in Gaston. The solar array will replace 100% of the business’s energy use with renewable electricity, reducing its utility bill by $1,501 per year.
• $19,756 to help Ross Tree Farm LLC purchase and install a 9.12 kilowatt  roof-mounted solar photovoltaic system on top of their building in Gaston. The solar array will replace 100% of the business’s energy use with renewable electricity, reducing its utility bill by $1,481 per year.
• $9,592 to help Schneider Farms Inc. purchase and install a 13.2 kilowatt roof-mounted solar photovoltaic system on top of their barn in Mount Angel. The solar array will replace 67% of the business’s energy use with renewable electricity, reducing its utility bill by $1,237 per year.
• $20,000 to help The Olive Branch in Dundee purchase and install a 22.51 kilowatt roof-mounted solar photovoltaic system on top of the building. The solar array will replace 100% of the business’s energy use with renewable electricity, reducing its utility bill by $3,046 per year.
• $11,824 to help Tin Willow Sheep Dairy, a sheep and dairy farm in Lexington, purchase and install an 8.76 kilowatt roof-mounted solar photovoltaic system on top of the building. The solar array will replace 55% of the business’s energy use with renewable electricity, reducing its utility bill by $782 per year.
• $14,456 to help Tiller Malt Co., a small grain malting facility in the rural town of Forest Grove, purchase and install a 13.5 kilowatt  roof-mounted solar photovoltaic system on top of the building. The solar array will replace 100% of the business’s energy use with renewable electricity, reducing its utility bill by $1,403 per year.
• ·$20,000 to help Whistling Duck Farm LLC purchase and install an 18.25 kilowatt roof-mounted solar photovoltaic on top of their barn in Grants Pass. The solar array will replace 49% of the business’s energy use with renewable electricity, reducing its utility bill by $2,574 per year.
• $29,602 to install a 29 kilowatt roof-mounted solar photovoltaic system at Arne Goddik Farms in Dayton. The solar array will replace 100% of the business’s energy use with renewable electricity, reducing its utility bill by $4,669 per year.