The next time you visit the Elk River Library be sure to stop by the Minnesota Municipal Power Agency (MMPA) kiosk located in the children’s section overlooking Orono Parkway and the city’s new solar installation. This educational kiosk is part of the Hometown Solar Grant the city received to fund a 5 kW solar installation on the east side of Elk River City Hall. Complete with interactive graphics highlighting how solar power generates electricity throughout the entire process – from sun rays being absorbed by the panels which creates electricity for city hall.
The kiosk also links to Solar Edge, which tracks in real-time the actual production in the panels across the street at the city’s solar installation. You can also check out how the weather impacted energy production from day-to-day, and learn more about environmental benefits like CO2 emissions saved and equivalent trees planted from utilizing this renewable energy.