A renewable shift powered by wind & solar
When imagining the future, the younger me dreamed of living like the Jetsons, flying cars, robots and gadgets performing every daily task. Instead we’ll likely see less hyper-futuristic homes and cars and more solar panel lined roofs and wind turbines.
I’m sure you’ve seen one of the few solar farms in Central Oregon, like the one south of Redmond, which produces enough energy for about 1,500 homes. We can expect to see more of these farms popping up around the state. According to the Redmond Spokesman, Senator Jeff Merkley announced that the Rural Energy for America Program will loan up to $48.2 million dollars for funding solar energy facilities in Deschutes, Klamath, Lake and Clackamas counties. Portland General Electric is building the Wheatridge Renewable Energy Facility, the nation’s first large scale renewable energy project complete with wind turbines, solar panels and battery storage, expected to provide power to 105,000 homes. These facilities will offset the energy needed from fossil fuels and by using batteries for energy storage it alleviates the hurdle of the intermittent power supply that comes from wind and sunshine.
Coinciding with the construction of these new energy facilities some fossil fuel plants will close. The Boardman Coal Plant in eastern Oregon is slated to close in less than two years and another coal power plant in Washington is set to turn off one of its burners in year 2020 and close by year 2025. Their former coal mine will become a one thousand acre solar farm.
A recent article from NPR states that California has mandated starting January 2020, all new single family and multi-family homes under three stories will be required to install solar panels. These homes are expected to use 53 percent less energy than homes built under the old standards set in the year 2016.
This new mandate has faced major scrutiny from developers and real estate professionals. Criticizing that the upfront cost of about $10,000 dollars will slow the real estate market where buyers already face high home prices. On the flip side, homeowners are anticipated to save more than $19,000 dollars over the course of 30 years due to lower utility bills. These solar panels can be purchased outright, leased or homeowners can enter into a power purchase agreement with the developers. There’s also an opportunity for communities to pool their resources into larger arrays instead of installation on individual homes.
Renewable energy is taking a foothold and gaining momentum around the globe. Large scale installations are great but we also need numerous small installations on individual homes, parking structures, and building rooftops. Your home can and should be an energy producer as well. California has always been a trendsetter when it comes to policy, and Oregon has a ways to go before we see these types of mandates here, but this may be a sign of what’s to come.