The problem with optimism is that it can be indulgent
January 25, 2019 3:09 AM   Subscribe

"One problem with ecological urban development is that it is too often disjointed and tokenistic. Hipster equivalents of Dig for Victory, however commendable, will not save us. Development needs to be rolled out on city-wide scales; every possible street, rooftop, block utilised. Sustainable building and the use of recycling to move towards a zero-waste culture is admirable but arguably still insufficient." An Architecture That Is More Than Just Green
posted by The Whelk (8 comments total) 15 users marked this as a favorite
 
I'm here to say that the solar industry at least is here for it. Our ability to roll out more PV is currently limited only by other people's ability to pay for it. Make it more affordable through incentives, create more government grants to construct it, and we'll just hire more people and build faster. Fifteen thousand workers in Massachusetts alone. The industry has already moved past the point where our customers are mainly people who want to do it for environmental reasons—most of them are now doing it primarily for plain old financial reasons, with the feel-good environmental aspect as a side benefit.

We're working on getting complementary technologies—power storage being the biggest one—ready for prime time, but in terms of "rectangles on roofs" we could be going a lot faster than we are. It's just a money thing.

Once we get our grid converted over to renewables, we can start removing fossil fuels from other parts of the energy budget. Transportation and heating can both be electrified, for instance—the technologies to do that are already there, we just need to build them. With a strong enough incentive structure in place, they could be built out fast. It could be done.
posted by Anticipation Of A New Lover's Arrival, The at 5:00 AM on January 25, 2019 [6 favorites]


john have you even slept yet
posted by poffin boffin at 7:09 AM on January 25, 2019 [2 favorites]


The problem with optimism is that it can be indulgent

The problem with pessimism is it leads to doing nothing.
posted by Chrysostom at 9:47 AM on January 25, 2019 [4 favorites]


I'm here to say that the solar industry at least is here for it.

Solar isn't zero-waste though-it depends on some pretty toxic extractive industries. In fact, I don't think zero waste is at all compatible with modern civilization, which isn't to say that reducing waste isn't a laudable goal in reducing the Mean Time Before Failure of civilization.
posted by happyroach at 11:32 AM on January 25, 2019


Let's hold out for something that's literally perfect then, that sounds like a better plan.
posted by Anticipation Of A New Lover's Arrival, The at 11:59 AM on January 25, 2019 [6 favorites]


Make it more affordable through incentives, create more government grants to construct it, and we'll just hire more people and build faster.

...and skim off more tax credits to sell to banks!

Solar energy is a good and necessary idea. The solar power industry in the U.S., at least, is nigh-overrun with hustlers and hucksters. We need to figure out how to deploy this without paying a bigger grifter tax than we already have.
posted by praemunire at 1:31 PM on January 25, 2019


I'm not really sure where you're getting that, praemunire. There are certainly many fly-by-night solar contractors, just like there are many fly-by-night painters, plasterers, carpenters, plumbers, and electricians. There are also large, nationwide solar companies that often take some advantage of their customers, just like the large, nationwide or multinational companies in literally every single other industry on Earth.

To get at what I think you might have been referencing, yes, most residential customers would benefit more from owning their array than from leasing one via a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA). However it's generally a question of benefiting some versus benefiting more. The equation can look quite different for commercial customers, and for utility-scale projects, which is where most of the actual megawatts are, the equation is yet again different. In terms of overall environmental impact, residential solar is actually a pretty small fraction of the pie. And when it comes to the environmental impact, the Earth's climate doesn't care who's getting the tax credits.

Anyway yeah, as a residential customer I would suggest looking for a mid-sized local or regional outfit with a track record of at least a couple of decades under the same name, and which primarily or solely sells rather than leases arrays to their residential customers. But then of course I would say that, as I happen to work for such a company.

If you had more on your mind, I'd be curious to hear it.
posted by Anticipation Of A New Lover's Arrival, The at 3:15 PM on January 25, 2019


I also think that if it's available in your area, owning a portion of a larger array through a community solar project is a fantastic option for most residential customers as it avoids having to have anything installed on your roof but you get all the same financial benefits. Even a PPA community solar is a pretty good deal, as for no upfront cost you can get a major discount (my parents pay about 25% of what they used to, through their community solar PPA) with many fewer drawbacks compared to a rooftop PPA. Community solar is also available to apartment-dwellers, not just owners of detached homes.

Of course it should go without saying that you should read and understand your contract because there are caveats involved even with something as painless as a community solar PPA. For instance, if you move out of the area served by your current electric utility, you generally have to find someone to take over the lease. Normally this would be the person moving into your home after you, but in the event that you can't find someone to take over the lease, there are generally penalties involved much like if you broke a lease on an apartment.

Anyway, it can honestly be a smashingly good deal for many residential customers, you just have to do your homework the same as with any other major financial decision, which is what buying solar fundamentally is.
posted by Anticipation Of A New Lover's Arrival, The at 3:26 PM on January 25, 2019


« Older Australia's highest mountain is a snow covered...   |   America's Informal Economy Newer »


This thread has been archived and is closed to new comments