Floating solar array could improve water quality, lower the power bill for Fort Lupton — if a federal grant comes through

By Mark Jaffe | Colorado Sun

When it came to its water treatment plant Fort Lupton had two concerns: controlling algae in the reservoir next to the plant and the aging diesel generator that backed-up the facility when the electric grid was down.

In collaboration with its power supplier Brighton-based United Power and the co-op’s contractor Schneider Electric the city found a solution for both – and then some.

That plan — a microgrid with a battery fed by 850 kilowatts of solar panels floating on the reservoir — is in line for a $6.1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy, part of $366 million awarded to 17 projects in rural areas and tribal nations from Alaska to Florida.

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