Village of Amesville Receives SolSmart Gold Designation
Emily Bails, Programs Associate
SolSmart, a national program through the Department of Energy, recognizes and celebrates cities, counties, and regional organizations for making it faster, easier, and more affordable to go solar at the local level. Currently there are over 500 designees in the U.S, with 16 in Ohio!
The Village of Amesville, a founding SOPEC member community, recently achieved SolSmart Gold designation. As a SolSmart designee, the Village has reduced local solar energy barriers and increased local solar knowledge!
SolSmart has four designation levels: Bronze, Silver, and Gold, with a recent addition of Platinum. Amesville first received Bronze designation in 2017. The Village made a commitment to pursuing SolSmart designation through posting a Solar Statement on their website, reviewed local zoning codes and identified restrictions that intentionally or unintentionally prohibit soar development, communicated with the local utility provider on community goals for solar, net metering and interconnection processes, and created a solar landing page on the Village website with information on their solar goals and local resources for solar development.
Some notable ways Amesville has supported the growth of solar energy is through technical assistance by connecting a local solar installer, Appalachian Renewable Power (ARP), to a local non-profit, Village Productions, to install a solar array that’s easily visible to visitors and residents. Additionally, the Village hosts ARP’s mobile Solar Trailer to provide clean energy during their Coonskin Saturdays community events and has a solar-powered educational kiosk in Gifford Park. The Village has further added resources to its Solar Landing Page, such as an updated Solar Step-by-Step Guide, that helps community members identify whether solar is right for their home or business, and identifies solar installers who serve the Southeast Ohio region.
The Village is also a recognized EPA Green Power Community, utilizing green power that exceeds the EPA’s minimum requirement of 5%, with 56% of the Village’s total electricity usage being Green-e® certified in the 2022-2023 supply year through the SOPEC Electric Aggregation Program.
In addition, the Village of Amesville was recently shouted out by SolSmart as the smallest SolSmart-designated community in the US!
Congratulations, Amesville, for achieving Gold designation and for your commitment to increasing local knowledge and reducing solar barriers!
To learn more about Amesville’s commitment to solar energy visit their website at: