An Australian firm is leading the charge in convincing governments to embrace solar power.
According to a new study, government agencies would save about $220 million each year if they installed solar panels on just half of their buildings that get direct sunlight.
The Australian firm Energy For the People is hoping to encourage government agencies worldwide to lower their energy costs and increase the use of renewable energy by installing solar panels Adelaide on every sunny building they own. The group says that if governments took advantage of all the space available for solar panel placement at minimal extra cost, they could make a significant dent in carbon dioxide emissions from power generation.
“Even though the upfront costs of solar energy are higher than current electricity prices, governments can save money in the long run,” said Andrew Reddaway, green power researcher for Energy For the People. “If state and local governments install solar panels on just half of their sunny government buildings, they can expect to save $220 million each year – about $65 per building – with a payback period of less than one year.”
Those potential savings are offered in the group’s new white paper, “Saving Money by Going Solar: Expanding Solar Power at State and Local Government Facilities.” Reddaway used data from government websites, public documents, and solar industry reports to make his calculations.
Estimating that 90% of state and local government buildings receive direct sunlight at least three hours per day, Energy For the People argues that the “potential environmental benefits of solar panels Adelaide are huge.”
Reddaway said that research has shown that solar panels placed on enough rooftops could provide 20% to 30% of the country’s electricity needs. In addition, researchers have found that solar could produce about one-third of the nation’s power.
Solar power is just one part of a broader solution to climate change, Reddaway said, but states and local governments should aggressively pursue it. For example, his group says that government agencies should put up solar panels on every sunny building they own, even if those buildings are in areas that don’t get three hours of daily sunlight.
“Even if the building isn’t in direct sunlight for three hours per day, it’s only a minor setback,” Reddaway said. “Not every rooftop is oriented properly either, which can result in up to 40% of rooftops being unfit for solar panels. However, with proper engineering, government buildings can still save money and produce clean energy by adding solar panels to buildings that don’t get full exposure to the sun.”
Energy For the People targets governments because they hold a vast amount of land, and their facilities often face the right direction and have enough space for solar panels.
According to the Charlotte Observer, the group has already won support from officials in Charlotte, N.C., who are looking at ways to install solar panels on city-owned buildings.
“If everyone followed this model, it would be amazing for an industry that is trying to get off the ground,” Jacob Jones, chief of staff for Charlotte Councilwoman LaWana Mayfield, told the newspaper. “I hope it would be a sea change.”
Energy For the People’s research has been cited by other publications, including The Huffington Post and Ecorazzi. Reddaway says he expects solar power to continue growing as prices come down.
“In Europe, about 1% of all buildings have solar panels on them,” Reddaway said. “In the United States, it’s more like 0.1%. So if the United States started using solar panels at the same rate as Europe, we could produce about one-third of our electricity.”
