en.Wedoany.com Reported - In the Emma community outside Asheville, North Carolina, Sugar Hollow Solar, PODER Emma, and Footprint Project have completed a series of solar installation projects, combining affordable housing preservation with environmental justice and introducing energy independence as a new means of community resilience.

PODER Emma is a mobile home community that protects families from displacement through cooperative ownership. This collaboration aims to shield the community from rising utility rates by generating its own electricity, thereby retaining financial resources internally.

The project installed 15 solar panels on custom porch roof structures of mobile homes and a 46 kW system on the roof of the PODER community center. Funding and equipment for these facilities came from the Repower WNC Fund (an initiative of Sugar Hollow Solar, supported by Amicus Solar Cooperative), sub-grants for equipment and labor, solar panels donated by Footprint Project, donations from IronRidge, and grants from Invest Appalachia.

Alan Ramirez, board member and secretary of La Esperanza, the real estate cooperative of PODER Emma, stated that during the hurricane, the community used the solar facility as a resource and resilience hub. By saving resources and generating electricity, the community can strengthen itself. The project highlights that communities affected by development, once equipped with information and tools, can drive innovation, address the disproportionate utility spending of low-income households, and ensure the continued development of the Emma community.

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