Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation

Population: 971
Size: 39 sq. mi.
Median household income:  $51,157

The Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation installed a 12 kW solar PV system on the “tribal headquarters #2” building in 2010. This building houses the environmental department for the tribe.

There are also two systems at the air monitoring station that are a demonstration project comparing tracking systems: a ~1.5 kW array on a Watson motorized solar tracker, and ~1.8kW on a Zone Works single-axis passive tracking system.

The headquarters building project has generated more than the projected quantity of electricity, and due to this positive experience, the tribe for a time was pursuing the development of 1 MW of solar PV capacity, working with EPA and NREL. However, the project was ultimately not approved by tribal council and will not go forward.

This information was gathered using web searches and conversations with tribal representatives. The census data was found online and represents 2010 figures.

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