Colorado’s Community Solar Program Allots 9 MW in 30 Minutes

Date: 16 Aug 2012 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 1 Facebooktwitterredditmail

When you subtract out shady roofs, renters, and other factors, only about 25% of Americans have a place to install solar power.  With the high upfront cost of a complete system, the potential solar universe shrinks further. That changes with “community solar.” After a long wait on the state’s Public Utilities Commission to finalize the rules, … Read More

Community Solar Should Save Money, Not Just Trees

Date: 18 Nov 2010 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

IN this environmentally conscious college town, thousands of bicyclists commute each day through a carefully cultivated urban forest whose canopy shields riders and their homes from the harsh sun of this state’s Central Valley.

The intensity of that sunshine also makes Davis an attractive place to generate clean green energy from rooftop solar panels. And therein lies a conundrum. Tapping the power of the sun can also mean cutting down some of those trees.

Enter community solar.  Individuals can invest in a nearby, common solar PV installation, saving kilowatt-hours and trees.

But the article provides some poor examples: the Sacremento Municipal Utility District’s Solar Shares and SunSmart in St. George, UT.  In the case of the former, participants pay extra for their solar power.  In the case of the latter, participants pay extra for solar and – worse – pay up front for 20 years of more expensive power. 

In our recent report – Community Solar Power: Obstacles and Opportunities – we provide a case study of nine operational community solar projects – five of them provide a payback on investment rather than asking a premium price for clean power.

Community solar can save trees, but it can also save participants money.   

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