An aging power grid at Warm Springs may soon get a 21st-century upgrade.

The Warm Springs Community Action Team, a non-profit that supports small business development on the reservation, has been accepted to a federal program that will offer consultancy work on solar energy and battery development. A second phase could see the installation of hard infrastructure.

Inadequate funding and years of neglect have left infrastructure on the Warm Springs Indian Reservation in a dilapidated state. Power cuts and water system breakdowns have become common in the community of 5,000 people. Working with the federal government could put Warm Springs on a path of infrastructure development that it has not been able to achieve on its own.

Climate change exacerbates outdated infrastructure, as heatwaves and wildfires take their toll on the Warm Springs community. More reliable power could help maintain the grid when air conditioning units are going full tilt, or if energy infrastructure is damaged by heat or wildfire.

“Electricity here is unreliable and the power can go out for hours,” said Chris Watson, director of the Community Action Team. “When that happens, when it’s hot, food goes bad in refrigerators. Those kinds of things happen because of the unreliability of the grid in Warm Springs.”

Frequent outages

The federal program could change that by offering the technical expertise and funds to develop solar projects and batteries to boost the grid’s resiliency. The program is organized by Energy Storage for Social Equity, a division of the Department of Energy.

Randy Nathan, owner of the Eagle Crossing restaurant at Warm Springs, said power outages shut down his business once or twice a month, for a few hours each time. A solar power backup could help small businesses like his avoid disruptions.

“I have looked into solar power for my building,” said Nathan. “I can’t do it because I don’t own the building but I’d like to see that happen.”

Three Oregon communities are part of the program. The remaining 11 are located in other states. Most are Native American communities.

The goal of the project is to help underserved communities develop energy storage capabilities, and make the communities more resilient in the face of climate change, which impacts places differently across the country.

During the first phase, the communities will receive technical support to assess their energy challenges and find solutions. Five of the 14 will be selected to advance to the second round.

Rogue Climate, a non-profit that supports communities impacted by climate change, is another Oregon group in the project. A third Oregon participant is Coyote Steals Fire Energy Group in Pendelton, a consultancy group that advises Pacific Northwest tribes on energy use.

Net-Zero Buildings

In phase two, the remaining participants will be able to tap into federal funds to help pay for the installation of solar and battery projects. Net-zero energy buildings and solar-powered homes could be in the offing for Warm Springs if the community gets this far.

Solar and battery projects help communities deal with climate change in different ways. As the country experiences more coastal flooding and wildfire due to climate change, backup power will be necessary in case power stations and infrastructure are damaged.

Increasing heatwaves are another factor, as more power is needed when air-conditioning units a switched on.

And then there are droughts, all too familiar in Central Oregon. These create increased competition for water between energy production and other uses — having a backup energy supply reduces that stress.

In 2020, Warm Springs experienced over 630,000 minutes of community-wide time in which people were without power, according to Watson, the action team director.

“Having systems like this in place can provide an added level of protection should there be systemic issues with the power grid,” said Watson.

Solar panels

Phase two kicks off shovel-ready projects. There is a little over $5 million dollars in funding, or, roughly $1 million for each organization in phase two.

At Warm Springs, Watson said there are four separate projects that could go into production. Adding solar panels to the Community Action Team office, to make the building a net-zero construction, could be one of the first projects

“We won’t have to pay anyone for the power because we will be generating it ourselves,” said Watson.

Another planned project at Warm Springs sees the construction of a solar farm to power at least 500 homes on the reservation, possibly more. Lower-income and lower asset families would be the first to benefit, said Watson. Electricity bills could be cut by 20% to 40%.

“We are going for it,” said Watson. “We are trying hard to make these things happen.”