Dear ,

Artspace met with the SOLAQUA team in April to finalize contractual negotiations. This is the second Artspace visit to Chatham since October. The April meeting marked the next step in solidifying the partnership between us. In January Artspace officially accepted SOLAQUA’s proposal to transform the former Columbia Boxboard Mill into a multi-purpose performing and industrial arts center powered by renewable energy.

Call for Artists

SOLAQUA is looking for artists interested in fire arts including glassblowing, forging, and other types of metallurgy, who would be interested in living/working at the SOLAQUA site. We are also actively seeking artists interested in art projects involving the use of recycled glass. If you are interested in becoming a SOLAQUA artist, please visit our artist sign-up page at www.solaqua.net/artists.php and give us as much information as possible about the type of art you are interested in. The artist survey to be conducted by Artspace will draw on this information as well as thier own survey tools.

Research

Jon Sarno , a graduate student at Bard College joined the SOLAQUA project in June of last year as an intern.  He has since taken on a larger role as a team member and has completed his Master's Thesis on the renewable energy plan for the SOLAQUA mill.  The project focused on energy demands from hydrogen arts to air conditioning and how SOLAQUA, being positioned in upstate New York, can realistically achieve energy independence in a technically and economically feasible way. 

The project served to establish a realistic renewable energy generation plan. This plan includes electricity generation from sunlight through photovoltaic panels, and from the Stony Kill Creek through the use of a hydroturbine. The other piece of energy generation, which in the northeast is probably the most costly to everyone, is heat. Heat will be generated on-site using solar-thermal collectors, which will feed the heat into large stores of water used to circulate through the mill to provide heating. In the summer, the heat generated will actually be used to drive the air-conditioning system. Monetarily, the SOLAQUA project will be benefited by renewable energy technologies to the scale of nearly $15 million based on conservative energy price estimates.

Visit the project homepage located in the Research section of the Solaqua website at: www.solaqua.net/SolarGate/Energy

For more information on the project and results you can download a .pdf of the final thesis report on the project homepage.

SOLAQUA KIDS

SOLAQUA KIDS is an emerging arm of the SOLAQUA organization focused on outreach and education. The SOLAQUA KIDS outreach is currently being developed by John Wells, who among various other programs has developed a two-day intensive workshop focused on hands-on renewable energy education. SOLAQUA KIDS is also developing the “Tower of Power” a monument of renewable energy design and application to be unveiled later this year.

BLOG

SOLAQUA has recently unveiled a new informational and conversational resource in our very own web log! SOLBLOGQUA can be accessed through our website by clicking on “Blog.”

GEM Car

The SOLAQUA GEM Car is an electric car powered by photovoltaic panels positioned on both of the wing doors allowing for continuous electricity generation in the sunlight. The GEM features a state-of-the-art PA system providing a mobile, stand-alone, concert-quality, sound system perfect for festivals and events. The GEM Car will be used for educational outreach programs, fund and awareness raising events, concerts and other public activities. SOLAQUA exhibited the GEM at the 18 th Annual Tour de Sol last week in Saratoga.

Upcoming Events

Come and see us at upcoming events! We will have the GEM car at:

• The Columbia Land Conservancy’s 16th Annual Shad Bake and Country Barbeque, May 28 th at 4:30 p.m. at Kinderhook Farm in Ghent, NY.

• The Columbia County Fair, August 30th – September 4th in Chatham, NY

Stay tuned for further upcoming event announcements, and if you would like to volunteer to help us please email us at: info@solaqua.net or call 518.392.8171