Solar Trees in San Francisco Step 2: Identify the problem- find the best location for a solar farm in San Francisco Step 3: Define Opportunities Step 2: Identify the problem- find the best location for a solar farm in San Francisco Solar Trees in San Francisco Stanley Wu and Nisha Parikh Section 101 and 107 Method Results: The Ideal Location Highest Suitability Score: 7 No constraints, all opportunities Introduction The use of fossil fuels to produce energy is a resource intensive process that generates a great deal of waste and pollution. Utilizing renewable sources of energy is instead more sustainable. In particular, solar energy is one of many types of renewable energy that is underutilized. Use of such energy can reduce air pollution, increase public health, reduce dependence on fossil fuels and mitigate climate change. Bad Good Step 1: Define the Problem Find the best location for a solar farm in San Francisco, CA Available Land High Pop. Dens. Southern Aspect Solar Radiation Step 2: Define the Opportunities Liquefaction and Streets Canopy Cover Crime Conclusion Best place to put a solar tree is in the Financial District The solar trees will make the area more atheistically pleasing It will serve an economic benefit for the businesses and the City of San Francisco in reduced energy costs to keep areas well light Extra energy generated can be used by companies to power their office buildings Step 3: Define the Constraints Aim The main aim of this project is to find the optimum location for solar trees in the city of San Francisco. As a densely populated urban area, space and resources are limited. For this reason, a suitability analysis was performed to determine the best location for the solar trees. Solar trees combine form and function as they generate renewable energy. They use space efficiently, and the energy produced from solar trees can be used to light streets. Installation of solar trees will help San Francisco reduce its carbon footprint and pollution generated by the use of fossil fuels. It will help other regions in California as well as polluted air from the bay area is transported to other regions-like the central valley- that end up bearing a disproportionate amount of the environmental burden. Step 4: Perform Suitability Analysis Acknowledgements Source: US Geological Survey, US Census Bureau and San Francisco City and County Enterprise GIS program Projection: State Plane Coordinate System (NAD 1983 California Zone 3, feet) Opportunity Description Rationale Densely populated Used census data to find areas with high population density Maximize usage of solar power/energy generated Southern aspects Selected south facing aspects These areas receive more sunlight Solar radiation Assigned different weights to irradiance gradient Want to optimize for sunlight Available land Selected open spaces and vacant lots Need an available plot for the farm Constraints Description Rationale Liquefaction 500 ft buffer Potential for property damage Crime 300 ft buffer around vandalism, trespassing and stolen property Streets 100 ft buffer Don’t want to build on streets Canopy cover Clipped to San Francisco Tree coverage limits capture of sunlight