Tag Archives: policy
Energy Policy’s Difficult Choices
I recently wrote a post critical of radical environmentalists who take rigid positions and refuse to make the tough choices that confront us all in the real world. In particular, I stand in disagreement with people’s unwillingness to exile the tortoises from 4613 acres (about five square miles) in the California desert that would have [...]
Germany Loves Their Renewable Energy
Electricity rates in Germany drop by up to 40% during the hours in which solar power or wind power are active — and this is what Merit Order ranking is all about, using the cheapest available electricity source first - and then filling in the gaps with more expensive coal-fired electrical power generation. Merit Order ranking (M.O.R.) is a system [...]
The Difference Between Solar Certificates and Certification
We receive this question a lot - “What is the difference between solar installation certification and a solar installation certificate?” The distinction is important because there is no shortage of solar installation schools across the country – many of them excellent, many of them not. Before signing up, you want to know that you’re receiving [...]
What Is Driving Jamaica’s Solar Growth?
In many solar hotspots around the world, policy is one of the primary drivers behind widespread renewable energy adoption. In Germany, Ontario, Florida, and Japan, for example, politicians have successfully enacted a range of solar incentives to boost photovoltaic installations. But in Jamaica, this type of government involvement may not be necessary. The island nation’s [...]
Solar Subsidies vs. Fossil Fuel Subsidies
As reported in Reuters, researchers at the University of Tennessee’s Baker Center for Public Policy recently published a report indicating that the US government’s support for solar energy is absolutely no different than support for other energy sources, despite what fossil fuel companies would have you believe. The reality of the subsidy situation is quite [...]
Low-Income Housing Residents Going Solar
Until recently, the low-income housing community has been a tough nut for the solar industry to crack. Low-income housing developments have historically avoided going solar due to the obvious difficulties of incorporating high-cost, discretionary photovoltaic (PV) systems into affordable housing. However, a unique mix of local, utility, and federal support combined with a little financial [...]
In Focus: CLEAN L.A Solar
Los Angeles recently revealed an ambitious plan to turn rooftops of local homes, businesses and multi family buildings into one giant solar farm. Put together, all the potential buildings for solar rooftops add up to 12,000 acres of surface space and if all of this is covered with photovoltaic panels that can efficiently tap into [...]
In Louisiana, Big Oil Comes Before Residents
In a jaw-dropping decision, the Louisiana House recently sided with the oil and gas industry over landowners in an ongoing dispute on how to clean up the damage caused by drilling. As reported in the Huffington Post, New Orleans Rep. Neil Abramson’s proposal would change the legal process for dealing with “legacy lawsuits.” The bill [...]
54 Cities in India to be “Solar Cities”
India’s New and Renewable energy minister Farooq Abdullah stated that the government of India has given its consent for fifty four cities to be urbanized as solar powered cities, out of which a green light has been shown to thirty nine cities. All the thirty nine cities in collaboration with consultants prepared different master plans [...]