Newly available rebates from Solar Colwood will be announced at Sunfest this Saturday, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., at Colwood city hall.

Electric vehicle charging stations installed in either homes or businesses will now qualify for rebates through the program. LiveSmart B.C. and Solar Colwood, funded primarily from federal grants, will provide up to $750 to homeowners for a basic charging station. More cash is available for stations that are either Smart Grid ready (calibrated for charging in B次元官网网址榦ff peakB次元官网网址� hours) or solar powered.

Organizers of ColwoodB次元官网网址檚 Sunfest are hoping that summer weather will shine on their event, intended as a celebration and promotion of the ongoing Solar Colwood program. Free to attend, the event will feature live music, childrenB次元官网网址檚 activities, local art and free cob oven cooked pizza and cookies baked using the sunB次元官网网址檚 energy.

B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e just wanting to bring the city together and have a good time, celebrate this wonderful program,B次元官网网址� said program co-ordinator J Scott.

An array of electric vehicles -- Chevrolet Volt, Nissan Leaf and Toyota Prius -- will be on display, along with the technologies available to make homes or businesses more environmentally sustainable.

So far, there have been 34 solar hot-water heaters installed in Colwood, along with 59 ductless heat pumps. This is up from 25 and 53 as of March, respectively. Scott said more installations are also in the various stages of completion.

Signs are being placed outside of homes that have taken advantage of the program to encourage others to do the same.

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