Florida Gets Serious About Solar, Aims for No. 2 Spot in U.S.
The Sunshine State is finally beginning to try and live up to its reputation, as it starts moving rapidly toward increased use of solar energy.
The latest advance came with this week’s announcement by Florida Power & Light Company (FPL) that the utility plans to add 110 megawatts of new solar energy capacity in the state.
“Pending regulatory approval, FPL will build 110 megawatts of solar power right here in the Sunshine State, making Florida No. 2 in the nation for solar energy,” said Lewis Hay III, chairman and CEO of FPL Group. Hay made the announcement during the state’s second Serve to Preserve summit on climate change.
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The proposed installations include solar arrays at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, an FPL facility in DeSoto County and an FPL plant near Indiantown. Construction on all the arrays are expected to start either later this year or early next year.
Also at the climate summit, the Gulf Power Company announced its new EarthCents initiative, which will provide incentives to customers who install solar thermal water heaters.
FPL’s CEO also spoke during the first day of the climate summit, and chastized the U.S. Senate for failing to vote on legislation to limit carbon dioxide emissions. Hay said the best solution lies with a carbon tax, rather than with a cap-and-trade system.
“If we do nothing to reduce the amount of CO2 pouring into the atmosphere, we are not avoiding the cost,” Hay said. “We are simply pushing both the cost associated with the growing consequences of global warming and the future cost of CO2 reductions down the road, onto our children and grandchildren. And if we do take action, I am confident the cost will be far lower than projected. America’s economy is driven by a fierce entrepreneurial spirit. Tell a capitalist there’s money to be made in finding cost-effective CO2 reductions, and watch the market burst with cost-effective solutions.”
Its going to be like Gattaca, only humid. Can’t wait.
About time the Sunshine State got serious about solar power…
I would like to propose a plan of action and a type of legislation termed Renewable Energy Payments or REP’s. The policy behind REP’s has been called “the world’s best renewable energy law”. It has proven to promote the fastest, cheapest, and widest growth of renewable energy. Its core principles are: 1. access to the power grid, 2. long-term guaranteed prices, and 3. no limit to the amount of renewable energy that can be sold to the utility companies.
STATE LEADERSHIP
In the US, energy policy is set at the national and state levels. Recognizing that our Federal Government is doing far too little to promote renewable energy, every state government needs to take leadership.
ENERGY INDEPENDENCE
The US consumes 25% of the world’s oil, but only has 3% of the world’s oil reserves. Our national and state economies are overly dependent on oil. Developing our own renewable energy breaks our dependence on Middle East and other foreign oil, thereby increasing our energy security. Renewables will help to solve global warming, and create millions of new well-paid jobs.
MORE THAN ENOUGH
Every state has more than enough renewable energy from the sun, wind, water, biomass and/or heat from the earth, to meet their needs. Renewable energy can be used for heating, cooling, electricity, and as fuel for machinery and transportation.
FREE & CLEAN
Once the investments are made to buy, install and maintain solar panels, wind turbines, etc., the actual “fuel” is free and ongoing. Compared to the costs related to fossil fuels-extraction, production, transport, pollution, illnesses, and wars-clean renewable energy is cheap. While fossil fuels pollute the environment and cause global warming, renewable energy is clean.
MOST EFFECTIVE LAW
The most effective legislation to stimulate a rapid transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy has been pioneered in Germany. This has made Germany the world leader in the production of solar panels, creating 234,000 jobs. In the 1980s the US had an 80% share of the solar panel market; today we have 25%. The German legislation is so effective that over 45 other countries, states and provinces have adopted similar laws with great success. We must remember Germany has the same number of peak sun hours (3) per day as southern Canada. Florida receives an annual average of 5.5 peak hours of solar resource per day.
HOW IT WORKS
This legislation encourages people and groups to install solar panels, wind generators, etc. to produce energy and sell it to their power company at a price guaranteed for 15 to 20 years. People are eager to install this equipment, as they will recoup their investment in about 9 years and have a steady stream of income after that. This increased demand creates jobs, conserves fossil fuels, and lowers greenhouse gas emissions-Germany is on track to meet its reduced CO2 emissions targets three years early.
BRING IT HOME
This simple idea that is producing astonishing results elsewhere has received little attention in the USA. It can help states reach their CO2 reduction targets, and their goals to have a percentage of their energy come from renewables by a set date. Climate chaos, escalating fuel prices, and wars show us that we need to switch from fossil fuels to renewable energy. We have the technology, know-how, and resources. Now we need leadership from our state government.
WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE
Florida is an innovative leader in renewable energy. With REP’s we can do the most to help our state make a rapid transition from fossil fuels to clean renewable energy. By being a leader in clean renewable energy, Florida will create many thousands of well-paid jobs, improve public health, and help stop global warming. By reducing Florida’s dependence on imported fuels, we will keep the revenues of the energy industry within our state and increase our national security.
PLAN OF ACTION
With Decentralized Renewable Energy we create:
Efficiency - Renewable energy can be produced right where it’s used, so almost nothing is wasted.
Security - Currently, accessible renewable resources can deliver six times more energy than all the people on this planet use every day.
Investment - Governments should support future technology that has the capacity to solve energy problems with clean, affordable energy for everyone.
Ecology - Most renewable-energy fuels produce no emissions. The quicker we switch, the quicker we can stabilize our climate and prevent catastrophes.
Independence - Renewable-energy technology produces energy in diverse, small-scale ways, allowing energy independence for everyone, everywhere.
Cost - Renewable-energy fuels are free. The sun and wind do not increase their price, and technology will become cheaper as the market grows. As a result, our valuable water supplies are left to meet other needs.
Economic Growth - Renewable energy provides stable fuel prices while creating a large number of high-skilled jobs in many sectors. The benefits are spread throughout society.
Similar legislation is being introduced in Washington, DC, and Michigan. We can bring it to the Sunshine State.