Report: Cities cashing in on benefits of solar energy
June 1, 2015 | By
Barbara Vergetis Lundin
The benefits of solar energy, like job creation and economic development, are fairly well-recognized, but not quite as well known is how cities can benefit by installing solar on their own buildings. Cities can use the rooftops of thousands of municipal buildings to reduce operating costs and pollution, and boost the local economy, according to a new report released today by the Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR), which demonstrates through five case studies how U.S. cities have leveraged solar to slash municipal energy bills and pollution.
"Cities have unused building roofs that are perfectly positioned to capture solar energy," said John Farrell, director of Democratic Energy at the Institute for Local Self-Reliance. "We knew there was an opportunity, but were surprised by how much money cities could save, how much potential solar could be installed, and how solar on municipal rooftops has spillover effects making solar easier for residents and businesses." The report details the ways in which five featured cities have overcome the barriers to solar adoption on public property and the substantial benefits of their solar activities. It also highlights remaining barriers, such as state policies. The "Featured Five" include:
"Cities like Raleigh, NC, and Kansas City, MO, have made remarkable strides given the uphill fight against restrictive state policies, whereas New Bedford, MA, has more solar per capita on public buildings because of two key state policies: aggregate net metering allows the city to group buildings together to offset electricity use and virtual net metering lets the city produce solar energy off-site for municipal use. Rules matter," said Farrell. In addition to these five case studies, the report estimates that mid-sized cities could install up to 5,000 MW of solar -- as much as one-quarter of all solar installed in the U.S. to date -- on municipal facilities, with little to no cash up front, allowing cities to redirect millions in saved energy costs to other public purposes. For more: http://www.fierceenergy.com/story/report-cities-cashing-benefits-solar-energy/2015-06-01 |