CONTACT:    Rebecca Harvey, Climate Mitigation Senior Program Manager, Board of County Commissioners, (360) 867-2938 or Rebecca.Harvey@co.thurston.wa.us 

OLYMPIA – Thurston County received a Silver designation from the national SolSmart program for encouraging the growth of clean, affordable solar energy at the local level. As a SolSmart designee, Thurston County adopted nationally recognized best practices to advance solar market growth. The county worked with SolSmart's no-cost technical assistance team to increase local knowledge of solar energy so the entire community can benefit.

“Solar energy is an important strategy of the Thurston Climate Mitigation Plan to help reduce local greenhouse gas emissions while helping our residents and businesses save money on their utility bills,” said Rebecca Harvey, Thurston County’s Climate Mitigation Senior Program Manager. “The City of Tumwater also received SolSmart Silver designation this week, which is just one example of how the county is working with the cities toward shared climate goals.”

Local governments achieve Solsmart designation by meeting established criteria for building solar-friendly communities. Those meeting the criteria are designated SolSmart Platinum, Gold, Silver, or Bronze. To achieve SolSmart Silver designation, Thurston County trained permitting and inspection staff on best practices and clarified that solar energy is allowed by-right in all major zones. These and other actions taken will make it faster, easier, and more affordable for local residents, businesses, and nonprofit organizations to install solar.

In particular, the county makes it easier to go solar by not requiring a county permit for residential rooftop solar systems. The county also offers long-term financing for solar energy and other green technologies through its C-PACER (Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy and Resiliency) program. Currently, the county is working with the State Department of Commerce to assess its own facilities for future solar and battery storage systems. The county is committed to sharing solar information and resources with the community and created a dedicated solar web page to do so at: thurstoncountywa.gov/solar. 
 
SolSmart is led by the Interstate Renewable Energy Council (IREC) and the International City/County Management Association (ICMA), and funded by the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Energy Technologies Office. Nearly 500 cities, towns, counties, and regional organizations have achieved SolSmart designation since the program launched in 2016. SolSmart designees are now in 43 states, the District of Columbia, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico. 

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