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America’s real problem with solar energy
America’s real
problem with
solar energy
A guest column by Terrill Dines
Each day, our industry sits down and
whittles the unsightly knots off the
tree we call solar energy. We, as a
group, spend more time than we should
pointing to one of a growing number of
reasons why solar energy isn’t taking hold
in America: that perhaps our government
incentives were cut too quickly, that our
state’s SREC program is broken, that the
net metering requirements aren’t strong
enough. Not that those things wouldn’t
further bolster our industry, but go out and
ask your friends and family about solar
energy. The problem with solar energy
in America isn’t a result of the deficiencies
of the incentives (although improved
incentives would set this industry on fire),
it’s with the astounding lack of knowledge
about a technology that can transform the
lives of everyone in our nation and around
the world.
Let me be provocative for a moment.
Do you know how much of a return on
your investment you would receive if you
installed solar on your home or business
right now? Do you know enough to even
estimate the amount of money you’d save
over 25-30 years? Would you guess that
solar energy is actually a financial investment
with recent returns more solid than
stocks and bonds? Do you know that solar
energy works in colder climates and on
cloudy days? Did you know that nearly
any solar installation company will gladly
provide you these numbers for free?
Probably not. Not many Americans can
begin to answer these questions. And who
can blame them?
We, as an industry, are still young.
We’re not the Behemoth of major corporations
with seemingly unlimited budgets
to pay for lobbying and well-placed television
commercials. We reach out to a media
who has no idea what solar energy really
is. We burn with such passion to help our
country, and yet many nights feel like we
are strangers in our own homes. You can’t
explain the entirety of the benefits of solar
energy in 140 characters. It’s both a great
and terrible feeling to know what you can
give people if only they knew what you
could give. It’s unrequited love in the form
of a solar panel, and we have thousands
upon thousands of them waiting to find a
good home.
We’re not at war with the other energy
companies, either. People will still need
oil for a very long time (probably longer
than our actual supply will last). No energy
employee from fossil fuel plants will end up
on Skid Row because of solar any time soon.
What about utility companies? Utilities are
actually required by the state governments
to purchase renewable energy, and most of
them have employees that are themselves
dedicated to the renewable energy sector.
They are not our enemies, either. Banks?
Banks are in the business of lending—they
would love for solar modules to be included
in home appraisals. The real estate market?
Solar panels on a home sells that home
much easier and (say it with me) “not our
enemy.” We simply have no natural predators,
and for that, we’re thankful.
What we do face is a nation who just
doesn’t understand us. We’re right here, and
there’s not been a better time to go solar
than today. The panels pay for themselves
typically about halfway through their life
cycle, and the rest is yours to keep. There
is a 30% federal tax credit for anyone who
installs solar on a home or business. Many
states have similar tax incentives to add to
that. You can get paid to send your excess
energy back to the grid. You can also sell
solar credits to utility companies. And if
you own a business, there’s a good chance
you can depreciate the entire installation
in one year. Did you know you’ll see, on
average, a more steady return from “going
solar” than you would on stocks and bonds
(at least historically speaking)? It’s okay;
most people don’t know that.
So here we sit as an industry with such
a powerful solution for our country—both
as a whole and to the people individually.
We are, as a nation, being quickly passed
up by other countries. Research countries
like Germany and what they are doing with
solar energy—it’s amazing. But we here in
the US can’t afford to tell everyone what
they need to know. We, instead, have to rely
on people finding us. We try, don’t get me
wrong, but we just don’t have the financial
size and subsequent influence to achieve
the success solar energy deserves. The solar
industry is young, lacking the means to get
the word out in the way that giants of other
industries are able to do.
Yet each installation site still drips with
the exhilaration and sweat of The Cavern
Club in 1961, right after a little-known band
named The Beatles just finished playing to
a room of about 100 people. Solar energy
is the early rock and roll of our generation.
We’re the rock and roll stars of our time,
hell-bent on changing the World. This time,
though, it really works. We, as an industry,
can see what is ahead. We’ll be here waiting.
And when you say “Oh man, I wish I knew
about this sooner,” we won’t judge. We’ll
love and support you just the same. It was
Marty McFly in Back to the Future who
said: “I guess you guys aren’t ready for that
yet. But your kids are gonna love it.” See you
soon, America.
Terrill Dines is the CEO of Honeycomb Solar,
a renewable energy company. Honeycomb
Solar’s goal is to bolster US energy enterprise
through installation, innovation, and
education. To learn more, please visit http://
www.honeycombsolar.com or write them at
info@honeycombsolar.com.
www.globalsolartechnology.com
Global Solar & Alternative Energies – May/June 2013 – 9