Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory is pleased to announce that our
merchandise trailer is now completely solar powered as of September 6th! Thanks
to a grant from the Donald M. Weesner Foundation we were able to have
Conservation Technologies install a 240 watt solar panel with a new battery and
a high quality inverter to give us complete energy independence at the ridge.
The panel is permanently mounted flush with the roof, rather than at an angle
as most solar panels are set, so you probably won’t even notice that it is
there.
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| ship and autumn sunlight |
Our trailer functions as both store and office during the
day and requires power to run everything from our cash register, to our credit
card system, to the overlook phone. Battery-powered radio communication between
the official counters, the banders at our three banding stations, and the naturalists
at the overlook is a crucial part of how we are able to bring banded birds to
the public. Now the large number of batteries needed for these radios can
easily be charged overnight by this solar powered system.
We are very thankful for the generosity of the donors who
have aided us in charging our previous battery and their continuing assistance in storing our trailer at
their home. Since Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory is a non-profit organization we
rely on the funds received from memberships, donations, and grants such as this
to cover the less glamorous but fundamentally necessary costs of our daily
operations.
Jessica Chatterton
Hawk Ridge Operations Director
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