Siletz Tribal members may qualify for free training in renewable energy
Are you interested in learning more
about renewable energy and perhaps a
career in installing solar panels, solar hot
water or wind turbines? Have we got a
deal for you!
The Siletz Tribal Energy Program
(STEP) has received a First Steps grant
from the Department of Energy. Part of
the money from this grant will be used to
pay to educate Tribal members on how to
install and maintain solar panels, solar hot
water heaters and wind turbines.
Training will be held this spring and
it may be held in Siletz. Training will
be provided by a leader in renewable
energy education.
You must provide the time; we can
pay for the training costs for you to attend
the class. If you are interested, you may
have to compete for a spot. We will have
a scholarship application ready soon.
Contact Marleen Wynn at marleenw@
ctsi.nsn.us or call her toll free at 800-922-
1399, ext. 1271, to express your interest
and get on our mailing list.
You do not need to be a Tribal
employee; you do not need to live in
Oregon. You just have to be a Siletz
Tribal member and let us know you are
interested. If you contacted us previously,
please call again to confirm your interest.
We hope to hear from you soon.
Don’t delay!
New solar panels at recreation center should help reduce electricity costs
Have you seen the new carport in
front of the recreation center in Siletz? If
not, check it out. You may be surprised by
what you see on the roof.
The Siletz Tribal Energy Program
(STEP), with funding from the Environ-
mental Protection Agency, had the car-
port constructed during the last week of
March and first of April. Benton Electric
of Albany, Ore., and its subcontractors
completed the construction. The solar
panels were purchased from SolarWorld,
an Oregon-based company.
The carport is 80 feet long and 22 feet
wide. It is outfitted with 78 solar panels
that can produce about 20 kW of electric-
ity and are predicted to last for 20 years.
The panels will be tied into the elec-
trical grid managed by Central Lincoln
PUD. Any power produced goes to the
recreation center, but then if it’s not used
by the center, it’s used by someone else
in the PUD system.
This is different from a system where
the solar power generated is stored in
batteries and only used by the systems
attached to the batteries. For example,
the solar street lights on Molalla Court
in Siletz are not tied to the grid. They are
attached to their own batteries and either
work or not depending on what power
they gather from the sun and what is
stored in the batteries.
The electricity produced by the solar
panels on the recreation center will offset
up to one-third of the heating and cooling
bill. The bill has averaged $300 per month
over the past two years. With the savings
from the solar electric, we can reduce the
cost by $100 per month and save the Tribe
$1,200 per year.
We also will reduce 5 tons of CO 2
emissions. This is equivalent to planting
130 tree seedlings and growing them for
10 years.
Stay tuned for more solar to come.
We will install panels on the roof of the
Tillicum Fitness Center next. Monitoring
equipment will be available so you can
watch the production of solar as it hap-
pens from the comfort of your computer
at home.
For more information, contact STEP
toll free at 800-922-1399, ext. 1271 or
1300, or e-mail step@ctsi.nsn.us. Search
for Siletz Tribal Energy Program on
Facebook and “like” us for even more
information and photos.
Photo by Natasha Kavanaugh
New solar panels at the Siletz Recreation Center should help the Tribe save $1,200
each year in electricity costs for this building.
Solar Carport at a Glance
Size of carport
80 x 22 feet
Number of panels
78
Peak power
19.89 kW
Savings in electricity per month
$100
Savings over life of panels
$24,000
Get ready to help out at first of three elders
woodcuts set for this year
The Tribal Natural Resources Com-
mittee and Natural Resources Department
will sponsor the first Cut Wood for the
Elders Day of the year on May 18.
The woodcut will be held at the log
yard at the Tribe’s Toledo Mill property
off Sturdevant Road in Toledo. Enter
at the log yard entrance (go straight all
the way to the end of Sturdevant Road,
through the chain-link fence gate and
down the hill to the railroad tracks and
the wood cutting area).
We need lots of volunteers to help
cut, split and deliver firewood for Tribal
Elders. Bring your chainsaws, hydraulic
wood splitters, splitting mauls, axes and
lots of energy.
Lunch, drinks and snacks will be
provided.
We will meet at the Tribal adminis-
tration building in Siletz at 8 a.m. and
caravan to the cutting site. For anyone
wishing to come later, directions to the
cutting site will be posted on the front
door of the building.
The goal of this event is to deliver fire-
wood to as many Elders as possible. The
Elders Program maintains a list of Elders
who burn wood for their winter heat.
People willing to haul firewood to
Elders outside of the Siletz area should
contact the Elders Program clerk at
800-922-1399, ext. 1261, or 541-444-8261
to be paired up with an Elder in need. We
especially need folks who can haul wood
to the Eugene, Salem and Portland areas.
Elders in need of firewood also should
contact the Elders Program clerk to get
their name on the delivery list.
If you have parents or grandparents
who burn wood in the winter to stay
warm, you need to help out at this event.
Come help replenish those wood piles
after a long winter.
Additional woodcuts are scheduled
for July 20 and Sept. 14, so mark your
calendars now.
General Council
Meeting
May4,2013•1p.m.
Siletz Tribal Community Center
budl@ctsi.nsn.us. Just a reminder –
basket materials must be gathered in a
timely fashion.
Here is a general breakdown of gath-
ering times for different materials:
Call to Order
Invocation
Flag Salute
Roll Call
Approval of Agenda
Approval of Minutes
Time to gather materials for baskets
Spring is almost here and very soon
hazel sticks will be ready to pick and peel.
Hazel stick gathering is a must for
anyone interested in making traditional
Siletz baskets. Spruce root can be dug all
year round and is used for the weavers or
weft of Siletz baskets.
Bear grass and maidenhair fern are
used for overlay to make our traditional
designs or marks in our baskets and both
are picked in late summer.
Tribal members interested in gather-
ing can call Bud Lane at 800-922-1399,
ext. 1320, or 541-444-8320, or e-mail
Siletz, Oregon
Programs:
July
Fir sticks, spruce roots, bear grass,
maidenhair fern
Update on Clamming Issue
Elders Program
Enrollment
August
May
Hazel, willow and fir sticks; spruce
roots
Fir sticks, spruce roots, bear grass,
maidenhair fern, hazel sticks (limited),
willow sticks
June
September
Hazel, willow and fir sticks (until
mid-June); spruce roots
Bear grass, maidenhair fern, wood-
wardia fern, spruce roots
Tribal Members’ Concerns
Chairman’s Report
Announcements
Adjourn
May 2013
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SiletzNews
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