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PrintQ&A: What's On Your Mind?
Q: Why should I consider installing a solar system at my house?
Photograph by Bjorn kindler/istockphoto
A: Northern California residents who have lived in the area during the past decade know the inconvenience of rolling blackouts. The California energy crisis of 2000/2001 focused attention on the topic of our energy overconsumption and was a major catalyst for energy conservation. In a combined effort with California’s investor-owned electrical utilities, electric service providers, and community choice aggregators, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger unveiled his “Million Solar Roofs” program, the goal being to procure 20% of all retail electricity sales from renewable sources of energy by the year 2017.
Installing a photovoltaic (PV) power system on your house has two extremely significant benefits: (1) It can lower your electrical bills by up to 60%, and (2) harvesting renewable energy from the sun alleviates dependence on fossil fuels, which increase toxic pollution, are nonrenewable, and are the biggest offenders in global climate change.
Through the “Go Solar California” campaign, the state offers rebates to customers in the Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E), Southern California Edison (SCE), and San Diego Gas and Electric (SDG&E) territories who install PV systems at their homes, businesses, farms, schools, and government buildings. Through the CSI (California Solar Initiative), cash rebates are awarded for every watt of solar energy generated by your system. You might also qualify for a 30% federal tax credit, through the Energy Improvement Extension Act, from now until December 31, 2016.
There are a few criteria you must meet to qualify for the CSI rebates, the most important being that you have an area of unobstructed sunlight on your roof or on the ground from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. year round and that your solar system is in a PG&E, SCE or SDG&E territory. These are the large investor-owned utilities; customers of municipal utilities can qualify for other rebates through their municipal service providers. Further information about PV energy and qualifying for rebates can be found at gosolarcalifornia.com/csi/
Continued reliance on non-renewable sources of energy creates anxiety over dwindling fuel supplies and is a direct threat to our global climate. In early 2007, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) concluded, at a scientific certainty level of 99%, that fossil fuels were to blame for the climate change. Average global temperatures are rising, and scientists predict a rise of 2.7-8.1 degrees by the year 2100. Switching to renewable forms of energy is a major step in the direction of combating global warming.
So, the issue is not why I should consider installing a solar system on my house, but when I should consider installing a solar system on my house. The answer is simple: the sooner the better.
We thank SunWize Solar for the assistance and expertise they provided for writing this article.
