We continue our Spring Quarter Explore Energy Seminar series with a talk on large-scale solar and storage development in Kings County. Noelle Tomlinson, our guest speaker, is a Land Use Planner with the Kings County Community Development Agency, where she works on zoning permits, environmental reviews, and long-range planning. She specializes in permitting utility-scale solar and battery storage projects and manages the county’s Williamson Act land conservation program.

Stanford has committed to purchase all the solar power produced from a dedicated portion of a vast solar installation in Kings County for 20 years. In this seminar, we will explore the scale of these projects, the permitting process behind utility-scale solar and battery storage, and what is at stake in local land use and environmental decisions. 

When: Tuesday, April 14, 6:00-7:20 PM
What: Explore Energy Seminar: Propel (ENERGY108 / CEE 108X / 208X)
Where: Bollard Dining
Who: Open to everyone!

Dinner with Noelle Tomlinson and students will be at Ricker afterward.

If you’d like to come prepared, please read Noelle Tomlinson’s 3-page memo on the county permitting process and the environmental impact review (pages 5-9) of a proposed 2.8 GW solar development.

Note: The site owner allows a maximum of 44 people from Stanford to enter the site each year.  Explore Energy House leads that field trip in collaboration with the Office of Sustainability.