Response 4: Reshaping Solar: Growth Expected Despite Economy

Wow. This article was so informative and captivating for me. In the beginning of the article it sounds like solar energy has a really promising future, but towards the end they do discuss the down- side of the credit crunch. Overall the future of solar heating does sound good though. Also, "19 GW of solar energy from 2009–2016" is a lot of energy to generate, and it's especially awesome that the industry will create an "addition of 440,000 jobs." If people can have solar panels installed and then pay off the cost as their 'monthly electricity bill' then what is stopping people from putting in solar systems?! However the article also states that the "Solar advocates are particularly concerned about the fate of third-party financing" because "the agreements depend upon investors with a strong tax appetite, often large banks." If the agreement is depending upon the large banks then there could obviously be a problem if the banks can't pay for it.
It seems as though there are a few utility companies that dominate the solar game however, and it could potentially hang smaller companies out to dry if they don't catch up sooner rather than later. If "solar hot water can meet 80% of a Florida homeowner’s water heating needs," then solar power can produce a lot of energy, so it wouldn't have to really be used so much with other types of energy. Although the fact that Florida is rather hot also has to be taken into consideration. Where as Maine might use way more hot water during the winter that Floridians ever would. Another thought to consider is what if utility plants could generate the solar electricity at a plant where it would then be sent out to homes, and everyone turned to solar energy?

Article 4: Reshaping Solar: Growth Expected Despite Economy

- Revenue from solar installations was up from "$7 million in 2005", to "$12 million in 2006", and "$30 million in 2007." A possibility of $60- $80 million can be expected in 2008.

- The solar industry seems to be gaining momentum especially after "President Bush signed into law an eight-year extension to the solar investment tax credit (ITC)."

- From 2009-2016 "19 GW of solar energy" is expected to be added to the industry, "equivalent to a $232 billion investment"

- The "Navigant Consulting report" expects an "addition of 440,000 jobs at a time when employment is shrinking"

-"third-party financing, also known as solar power purchase agreements," are when customers can avoid the expensive upfront costs when a solar system is put in by "solar service providers" offering "long term contracts."

- These contracts depend upon large banks that pay the upfront costs of solar and then allow you to repay them in monthly payments, just like a regular electricity bill. This has lead to many new installations.

- The needed "support from state governments" often has a large impact on the amount of renewable energy installations each year, so the credit crunch is greatly effecting many states that are now "facing large financial deficits."
- Independent solar companies may have slowed business due to utilities taking advantage of the tax credit for solar installations.

"There are over 3300 electric utilities in this country," 10 of which have controlled the solar landscape for the most part.

- "Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E)", has about "50% of all grid-connected PV systems in the country."

- "The Utility Solar Water Heating Initiative (USH2O)", a combination of the solar industry and utilities "says that solar hot water can meet 80% of a Florida homeowner’s water heating needs."

Jeanette's Response #2

Wow. The amount of wasted materials is incredible! I think that the way you are tying waste and sustainable fuel together works well. If you are needing information and small statistics about the amount of stuff people waste, try going to idealbite.com. It sends daily emails to people about small ways to improve their Eco-friendliness. Go to tip library to find categories that might be of interest to you. Also, have you ever heard of The Green Bus? I read something about it a few years ago, but it still might help you with sustainable fuel. It was a bus that ran on oil and fat instead of gas. This should be a very interesting topic to continue!!

Second blog response by Liam

Katrina, I like how you used many statistics because this makes it easy to understand exactly how much garbage American's produce and how long it takes to dissappear. I also like how you mentioned biofuel from food waste because you are right, it does solve two problems at once. You also mentioned that people who eat fast-food could possibly be the most responsible for litter and for a lack of recyclying. Does this mean if there were less fast-food restaurantes and people ate less food on-the-go, there would be less litter on the road and a greater number of people would recycle?

Katie's second post

Trina, all this is so interesting! It seems like it was a very wise decision to switch from sports technology to this. I love how passionate you are about what you are researching, it shows through in your information and responses, and I'm sure it will in your paper as well. Maybe you could focus on a certain topic within sustainable fuel- the geothermal systems sound fascinating, or you could research ways in which people are trying to promote recycling and the positive effects it has- you seem to be most involved with recycling and waste. For an interview or field experience, I'm sure Mr. Steele-Maley knows a lot about these kinds of things, or you could go to Rising Tide to talk to people, or Chewonki. I think any nature oriented people in the area would know information that could benefit your research.

Everett Second Response

You clearly have done quite a bit of work on the blog and that shows that you have strong feelings about this topic. I think that statistics and "fun facts" are a good way to get the reader to enjoy your writing. In several of your articles you did this. Nice work. 0personally, my favorite was Article: How Long Does Litter Take To Disintegrate?.

An idea for bacground research, ccheck out the Camden Hills Regional High School, I know that all of their heat is geothermal, and it might be nice to have a little more information on this.

EM