Foodbank of Santa Barbara in process of getting solar microgrid

SANTA BARBARA, Calif.- Solar power doesn’t just save money. It saves lives. 

That's the message from Craig Lewis, who is on a mission to change the way people think about renewable energy— one solar microgrid at a time. 

“Local solar provides an unparalleled level of energy, resilience and energy resilience will keep people alive,” said Clean Coalition Founder Craig Lewis.

His goal is to have solar microgrids installed all over Santa Barbara County—from schools and hospitals to fire stations and food banks. 
He says solar technology at the Santa Barbara County Food Bank is critical, especially since perishable items rely on power to keep food at the proper temperature.

“The ability to keep refrigerators and freezers operational is dependent on energy resilience. When the grid goes down, if you don't have energy resilience, those freezers and refrigerators turn off and they can only be off for a certain amount of time before the temperature of that food adjusts outside of the allowed calibration. And that means that that food is going to have to be disposed of,” said Lewis.

Right now the foodbank has a solar microgrid at its Santa Maria location.

The organization is still in the process of getting a solar microgrid for its Santa Barbara facility.