Solar and the Environment

“Every hour, the sun delivers as much energy to the Earth as all of humanity uses in a year. The total energy from just 20 days of sunshine is equal to all the energy available in the total reserves of coal, oil, and natural gas…”. (Environmental Defense Fund)

Skip the messy fossil fuels and go right to the source!

You can make all of the electricity you need each year with a solar electric system. When you go solar, you directly contribute to the fight against global warming, the emission of toxic pollutants and the destruction of the environment.  The best part is that you are investing in a near infinite resource. Unlike other fuels that we currently depend on, this one won’t run out for over a million years.

That is exactly what photovoltaic (PV) panels do.

Sun + PV Panels = Electricity. Zero toxic air emissions = Zero guilt.

By installing solar on your home, you are:

• Reducing the need for environmentally destructive coal mining and natural gas extraction
• Reducing the amount of sulfur, lead and mercury that is released into the atmosphere
• Reducing the amount of CO2 (a greenhouse gas that causes global warming) that is released into the atmosphere
• Reducing the need for resources that are decreasing in availability while they are increasing in cost
• Reducing the use of inefficient fossil fuel produced electricity (there is a 65% loss when converting fossil fuels into electricity)

Let’s compare:

The average American household uses about 1000 kilowatt-hours of electricity per year.  To make that electricity, power companies release an average of:

• 16,800 lbs Carbon Dioxide per Year
• 67 lbs of Poisonous Sulfur Dioxide per Year
• 157 Milligrams of the Neurotoxin – Mercury

But wait! How does the production of the solar panels factor into the equation?

Producing solar panels does require energy and materials, but the worst case scenario shows that a solar panel will generate enough energy in less than 4 years to offset the energy required to produce it (National Renewable Energy Laboratory). However, there are steps you can take to reduce that time even more. This makes solar one of the most efficient sources of electricity on the planet, and you can have it installed on your home without any of the loss that occurs (through transmission lines) when you buy “green” power from your local utility company. Therefore, all of the energy produced after that is truly free.