From Solar Nation:
"The Obama Administration has diverted one-third of the $6 billion allocated to the DOE Innovative Technology Loan Guarantee Program to the ‘Cash for Clunkers’ program, which has proved so popular that it was in danger of running out of money. The rationale of the Administration and Congress is that DOE will not be able to spend that part of its funds before the end of the year, so will not miss it in the short term. And White House staffers have assured concerned clean energy supporters that the Loan Guarantee Program fund will be replenished by that time."
As popular as the cash for clunkers program has been, pilfering the funds from the solar R&D fund seem a wee bit short-sighted don't you think? Why not raid funds set aside for the oil and gas industry or nuclear programs instead?
The way to fund this program so that it doesn't keep collapsing under the weight of its own success is to create a "fee-bate." Gas guzzlers - SUVs and trucks included - would pay a premium for the privilege of crapping up the planet and making us choke on excessive smog. That premium would subsidize purchases of highly efficient cars (and even SUVs and trucks if they are as fuel sipping as the top tier cars).
Not my idea by any stretch. The concept has been advocated by Amory Lovins of the Rocky Mountain Institute for decades.
Friday, August 28, 2009
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Miami-Dade to fast-track solar installation permits
As a result of the Building Code meetings with industry representatives, Miami-Dade County got the Board of Rules and Appeals to agree to a number of changes that will benefit solar.
For one, solar equipment will be considered "green" for the purposes of qualifying for the free "fast-track" of building permits in the unincorporated county. I hear the County is in talks with interested cities to get them to adopt similar fast tracking for green buildings and solar.
Another biggie is that the County will now consider solar panels as being "non-permanent" equipment so they can be installed as designed instead of being treated like air conditioning equipment and other "permanent" rooftop equipment.
Now if we could get a couple more products through code approval. The County may have a plan for that too. We'll have to wait and see if the Department of Energy approves the recent energy efficiency block grant program list, but there's a strong chance that the County may get the green-light on a project to reduce "market barriers" and help companies with the cost of getting product approval.
For one, solar equipment will be considered "green" for the purposes of qualifying for the free "fast-track" of building permits in the unincorporated county. I hear the County is in talks with interested cities to get them to adopt similar fast tracking for green buildings and solar.
Another biggie is that the County will now consider solar panels as being "non-permanent" equipment so they can be installed as designed instead of being treated like air conditioning equipment and other "permanent" rooftop equipment.
Now if we could get a couple more products through code approval. The County may have a plan for that too. We'll have to wait and see if the Department of Energy approves the recent energy efficiency block grant program list, but there's a strong chance that the County may get the green-light on a project to reduce "market barriers" and help companies with the cost of getting product approval.
Monday, June 1, 2009
Florida Renews Solar Rebate and adds loan program for Thermal (updated)
I was recently at the Green Cities conference in Orlando where some numbers were presented by a representative with the NRDC that stated that the Solar Rebate program was replenished with $5 million from the Florida portion of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (aka the stimulus bill) and will be using another $9 million for some sort of revolving loan fund for solar thermal to provide micro-loans up to $4500 for up to 5 years at a rate of 2-4% interest.
- update: There seems to be another pot of money to be used to replenish the rebate, doubling the total amount available, which would provide the funds to make good on the backlog and provide new funding for this fiscal year. This post has been edited to reflect that change.
There's another $20 million for solar schools / shelters which was a pretty successful program for getting demonstration sized solar onto schools for a couple years under Governor Bush. This would be a significant bump in funding and if FSEC is involved, I know they were trying to up the size of the installations to 10 kw so they could provide some off-grid emergency shelter functionality too.
You can find the details on the Florida Energy and Environment Commission website page on ARRA and an explanation on all the ways the State wants to spend $126 million on energy programs on this adobe document from the same web page.
The good news is all those nail-biting solar customers who went out on a limb and installed approved solar systems last year and applied for a rebate should get a check, but we're now relying on stimulus money to keep the program alive for just another year.
We need a public benefit fund in this State. Connecticut spends more on solar PV than Florida for goodness sake! And we need to provide a separate funding block for efficiency and thermal or PV will continue to eat up all the funds. As much as I love PV, thermal will have a much faster penetration into the market because of faster payback, less complicated installation and maintenance, and way less roof needed to go solar. Maybe the loan program concept will work since it will take the sting out of the initial up-front cost, but there's nothing like reducing your total out-of-pocket to pump up interest.
Solar thermal is the one part of the Florida alternative energy industry that struggled and survived through the down decades, and they need a fair shake when it comes to the incentives too. There's my shout-out for our scrappy solar thermal companies out there.
On that front, news to report about the Miami-Dade code recommendations. Post to follow soon when I get details. Good news for thermal and PV installations in Southeast Florida.
- update: There seems to be another pot of money to be used to replenish the rebate, doubling the total amount available, which would provide the funds to make good on the backlog and provide new funding for this fiscal year. This post has been edited to reflect that change.
There's another $20 million for solar schools / shelters which was a pretty successful program for getting demonstration sized solar onto schools for a couple years under Governor Bush. This would be a significant bump in funding and if FSEC is involved, I know they were trying to up the size of the installations to 10 kw so they could provide some off-grid emergency shelter functionality too.
You can find the details on the Florida Energy and Environment Commission website page on ARRA and an explanation on all the ways the State wants to spend $126 million on energy programs on this adobe document from the same web page.
The good news is all those nail-biting solar customers who went out on a limb and installed approved solar systems last year and applied for a rebate should get a check, but we're now relying on stimulus money to keep the program alive for just another year.
We need a public benefit fund in this State. Connecticut spends more on solar PV than Florida for goodness sake! And we need to provide a separate funding block for efficiency and thermal or PV will continue to eat up all the funds. As much as I love PV, thermal will have a much faster penetration into the market because of faster payback, less complicated installation and maintenance, and way less roof needed to go solar. Maybe the loan program concept will work since it will take the sting out of the initial up-front cost, but there's nothing like reducing your total out-of-pocket to pump up interest.
Solar thermal is the one part of the Florida alternative energy industry that struggled and survived through the down decades, and they need a fair shake when it comes to the incentives too. There's my shout-out for our scrappy solar thermal companies out there.
On that front, news to report about the Miami-Dade code recommendations. Post to follow soon when I get details. Good news for thermal and PV installations in Southeast Florida.
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Miami Herald Drops Ball on Secretary of Labor visit
The AFL-CIO Executive Council had a big meeting in Miami back in early March. I'm not in the solar business directly (just a big advocate), so I didn't hear a peep. Hilda Solis, then recently confirmed as Secretary of Labor, visited the group as one of her first acts on the job.
Why is her visit a solar energy story? Well, after addressing the Executive Council, she went to visit a training center for the IBEW where they're preparing future electricians to be the skilled "green jobs" workforce we need to successfully install solar photovoltaic and other "new" technologies.
Did you read about it in the Herald? I didn't. I found a link by accident to an online video of the visit on the IBEW's website: Sec Solis Visits LU 349 I have no idea how I got there, but glad I found the video none the less.
Curious how I'd missed such a big deal since I'm pretty good at scouring the local rag for energy stories, I ran a search of the Herald online and could only dig up a story in the Business Section (beacuse there's no such thing as a labor section) that came close: Labor secretary inspires union crowd in Miami, March 3, 2009
That story is just a bunch of piffle - no substance - about a rally of union members just happy to have someone at the DOL that might actually advocate for labor (organized or otherwise).
Nice to see the local electrical workers union wasn't waiting for stimulus funds or for the local markets to catch onto solar before they started their training programs. Very encouraging, even in the absence of the local press.
Why is her visit a solar energy story? Well, after addressing the Executive Council, she went to visit a training center for the IBEW where they're preparing future electricians to be the skilled "green jobs" workforce we need to successfully install solar photovoltaic and other "new" technologies.
Did you read about it in the Herald? I didn't. I found a link by accident to an online video of the visit on the IBEW's website: Sec Solis Visits LU 349 I have no idea how I got there, but glad I found the video none the less.
Curious how I'd missed such a big deal since I'm pretty good at scouring the local rag for energy stories, I ran a search of the Herald online and could only dig up a story in the Business Section (beacuse there's no such thing as a labor section) that came close: Labor secretary inspires union crowd in Miami, March 3, 2009
That story is just a bunch of piffle - no substance - about a rally of union members just happy to have someone at the DOL that might actually advocate for labor (organized or otherwise).
Nice to see the local electrical workers union wasn't waiting for stimulus funds or for the local markets to catch onto solar before they started their training programs. Very encouraging, even in the absence of the local press.
Miami Solar installation and design courses coming up soon
Miami-Dade College Earth Ethics Institute has been hosting photovoltaic training classes for a couple years now with the help of PV evangelist and FAU professor emeritus of electrical engineering Dr. Roger Messenger.
From their website:
Designing PV Systems, June 5, 2009
This is a 7-hour course that introduces the process of PV system selection, PV system site selection, types of PV systems, PV system electrical design considerations, PV system structural design considerations and PV system permitting and paperwork. It is intended primarily for design professionals (architects and engineers) but should also be of interest to code officials and contractors. Electrical and solar contractors who have taken the Installing Photovoltaic Systems course and want to understand more about the PV system design process may also be interested in this course.
Installing PV Systems, June 6, 2009
This is a 7-hour course that introduces the process of PV system installation and focuses, in minute detail, on how to install a PV system that someone else has designed. It includes understanding the electrical design, siting and structural considerations, safety considerations, system commissioning and programming as well as permitting and paperwork. It is intended for electrical and solar contractors as well as for electrical and structural inspectors and plan reviewers.
These courses qualify for 7 CEUs each for those who need continuing ed credits, and they're NABCEP certified too.
Thanks to the emailer who reminded me to post this.
From their website:
Designing PV Systems, June 5, 2009
This is a 7-hour course that introduces the process of PV system selection, PV system site selection, types of PV systems, PV system electrical design considerations, PV system structural design considerations and PV system permitting and paperwork. It is intended primarily for design professionals (architects and engineers) but should also be of interest to code officials and contractors. Electrical and solar contractors who have taken the Installing Photovoltaic Systems course and want to understand more about the PV system design process may also be interested in this course.
Installing PV Systems, June 6, 2009
This is a 7-hour course that introduces the process of PV system installation and focuses, in minute detail, on how to install a PV system that someone else has designed. It includes understanding the electrical design, siting and structural considerations, safety considerations, system commissioning and programming as well as permitting and paperwork. It is intended for electrical and solar contractors as well as for electrical and structural inspectors and plan reviewers.
These courses qualify for 7 CEUs each for those who need continuing ed credits, and they're NABCEP certified too.
Thanks to the emailer who reminded me to post this.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
