The big news this week from the Utopia. To prevent destruction and death PG&E shut down part of the grid. Dry season. Windy days. Cutting power prevents forest fires. California Solar customers who thought they’d have power were surprised to find they don’t. Would you?
Related: Why Wind Will NEVER be the Answer to Anyone’s Power Needs
Many of the mailer driven – “get solar now,” installations people “bought into” had lots of strings. Leins on your property for the value of the installation until the company made back it’s money (so not free). And unless you thought ahead, many of those were just collection locations tied to the grid.
The electricity supplier bought the power (probably forced by state mandate), credited your bill or sent you a check if you produced more than you used. But for some solar “owners” when the power goes out your power goes out.
Rules, Provisos, More Rules
Many states have complex mandates that make everyone else pay more for the output from the solar installation you think you own, but none of them (of which I’m aware) require each site to have “a system of inverters and batteries” that ensure the installation site has power when no one else does.
If you got solar on your roof that just ties to the grid you are a slave to the grid. And that is what happened in California this week. Solar did not come to the rescue.
Gas-powered generators did. Homes without those went without power, solar or not.
Along with the apparent supply-and-demand issue arising from California’s current crisis, the gas prices are also partly the result of the state’s “green” policies.
According to fuel data website Gasbuddy, California’s gas is already pricey thanks to its restrictive carbon taxes.
Wait, there’s More!
In addition, the liberal West Coast has roughly half of the refineries it did in the past, creating a major supply problem when the facilities have to shut down for maintenance.
Thanks to those factors, many have to deal with a lack of electricity at home and work, while paying a premium to drive between the two.
All those solar installations tied directly to the grid are also now responsible for a spike in – fossil fuel emissions.
So, you got a solar installation that put a lien on your home. It doesn’t protect you from born or blackouts. It drives up the cost of everyone else’s electricity (sucking resources out of the local economy). And oh, as a reminder, in incredibly bad for the environment during production and after it’s life-span.
Thanks for doing your part to save the planet.
