Solar Dilemma
We recently got our house assessed of solar panels. I had picked up a flyer from AES (Alternative Energy Systems) at last spring’s Home, Garden, and Antique Show at the Silver Dollar Fairgrounds, and this was a free service that they offered.
Our roof provides great exposure for solar, but there is one problem. It is true that the proposed $9,867 system would lower our electricity bill by 86%. However, our present energy costs are pretty low to begin with (we have been averaging $56/month on electricity since purchasing our house), so it would likely take up to 16 years to recoup our investment cost. The Catch-22 is that it would take even longer if we conserved even more energy.
On the plus side, adding solar panels will likely increase the value of our house (which is good, provided we intend to sell it someday), and also makes a statement that we support solar technology and clean energy.
However, an argument can be made that it makes more economic sense to integrate more energy-saving practices in my home and spend, say, $867 to purchase more low energy-use devices, such as compact fluorescent light bulbs or improved insulation materials, be it better windowblinds to reduce summer heat or weatherstripping to keep out the December chill. The remaining $9,000 that would have been spent on solar panels could instead be invested in some other manner over the next decade and a half.
Another thing to keep in mind is that PG&E itself is continuing to add to “clean” energy technologies to the grid such as solar and wind (currently 12% of PG&E’s power is from renewable sources, according to their website), though one needs to ask, is their pace fast enough for my conscience?
Comments
yeah, we came to the same realization when a friend of our paid $40,000 to equip his big house on Butte Creek. My husband won't even talk to me about it anymore. He says, "solar is for high users and rich people, not for working class like us." Well, he said it alot cruder than that, but there's the gist of it.
He also reminded me, we use solar everytime we hang the wash. Plus, I used one of those shower bags all summer, those work great. I just hung it in a secluded spot on my patio, with the bag up on the edge of the roof where the sun hit it all day. I made sure to hang it within reach of my garden hose. It still gets a lot of sun but I haven't had the nerve to use it since the temperatures dropped lately.
Every little bit helps, that what I teach my kids. It's usually the little gestures over the long haul that really save the day.
Posted by: juanita | October 4, 2007 08:11 AM
Sustainability requires us to consider our actions in light of the triple bottom line of ecology, economy and equity. The question of "going solar" is no different.
Solar has become more popular as the economics have improved. Solar power now "pencils out," in most cases. Furthermore, while a solar system may take sixteen years to pay for itself, the earnings to investment ratio is still much higher than current market rates. There are few things you could invest $9,000 in and expect to double your money (payoff) in fifteen years.
Seen through the other two lens of ecology and equity, solar is the only answer. When we buy your power from PG&E, we are ony paying a fraction of the true cost of that power. Current energy prices "externalize" the costs of pollution, especially climate change pollution. A carbon tax is one way to internalize the cost of climate change into the price we pay for power. If that were to happen, solar would be a "no brainer."
Going solar (carbon neutral) is also the "right" thing to do. Americans produce more carbon per capita than anyone else in the world, but we will not be the ones to feel the worst of the effects. If sea levels rise three feet, for example (a low estimate), half of the country of Bangladesh (population 150,000,000) would be under water. And there is no equity at all in current generations passing along the "full cost" of energy production to future generations.
So, in my opinion, there is no dilemma. If you can do it, going solar is the only "sustainable" option.
Posted by: Mark | October 6, 2007 01:46 PM