August 5, 2008: Kaptur Tours Solar Array At 180th Fighter Wing in Toledo

Standing against a backdrop of a solar panel array at the 180th Fighter Wing, Kaptur said the initiative “to capture the power of the sun from the blue yonder and transmit it back to the base electrical system” represents a pioneering effort to make U.S. military bases energy independent. Current construction efforts will install the first one third of a field array that ultimately will produce one megawatt of power, or half the base energy supply.

Congresswoman Kaptur said the hardware for the array is 96 percent domestic content, most of it locally procured, with local firms and skilled trades performing the installation.

“The most significant strategic challenge America faces is moving our nation and our nation’s defense to an energy independent posture,” said Kaptur, a member of the House Appropriations Defense subcommittee. “Imported energy is the chief strategic vulnerability.”

Kaptur said the 180th Fighter Wing base “serves as a 21st Century prototype, not just for Ohio, but for the entire nation. Our region, because of our advanced energy technologies, will help lead America to a new day when energy freedom will be restored. Others may talk about restoring America’s energy independence. Here in northern Ohio, we are already leading America forward.”

She said The Economist has identified Toledo as one of the three most significant solar energy research communities in the world. “This base clearly captures that lead in a way that the public will come to understand,” Kaptur said. The solar field concept, she said, provides a more cost effective technology than other applications, such as a project underway at Creech Air Force Base in Nevada.

From her position on the defense subcommittee, Kaptur directed a $7.1 million new energy initiative that includes $5.1 million at the 180th and $2 million at Ottawa County’s Camp Perry. The Camp Perry initiative is focused on using wind power as an alternative energy source.

She said the initiatives at the 180th and at Camp Perry complement her efforts to help build an alternative energy industry in Northern Ohio around the hub of the Center for Solar Energy and Hydrogen at the University of Toledo.

“We’re creating the economy of the future thanks to a robust federal commitment, combined with local participation from many quarters,” she said.

“There’s a lot at stake here. There is no higher priority than making our nation energy independent and positioning Northern Ohio as a leader in that endeavor. We have shown that can lower our operating costs and improve our security at the same time. We intend to show the rest of America the way to declaring independence from unstable foreign energy sources.”

The 180th Air Wing at Toledo Express Airport has been ranked as an Excellent unit in the Air Force ranking system and is slated to receive the Joint Strike Fighter, the successor aircraft to the current F-16’s that are being flown.