Sol y sombra
The San Francisco Department of the Environment recently went on line with something they're calling the San Francisco Solar Map. Find it here . It's a pretty neat idea. The idea behind the map is to begin to get a sense of the sheer number of photovoltaic solar installations that are scattered throughout the city. And what it does too is allow someone to go see where a rooftop installation is in his or her neighborhood and then go see firsthand how unobtrusive a rooftop solar installation can be.
If you take a look at the map from pretty a long way lower back, you could get a feel for simply what number of solar installations there are.
Here it's miles a touch greater zoomed in.
And here's my friend Jim's street --certainly one of his buddies has a rooftop installation.
San Francisco has set a purpose of being host to 10,000 solar rooftop installations by way of the yr 2010. That's pretty wonderful, but after I recall the supply, it is not absolutely unexpected. However, about the final place on this planet I consider in relation to sunshine is the incredible City by way of the Bay. San Franciscans will never admit it, however coastal northern California has some of the most overcast skies I've ever experienced. I'm speaking weeks spent at the back of a veil of clouds and fog so dense it makes me lose my will to live. Don't get me incorrect. San Francisco's a excellent town and I'm eternally grateful that I could make my climate-associated generalizations from first-hand enjoy. But nevertheless, San Francisco's not the region to go if you're on a quest for limitless summer time. Yet, come what may, they make solar paintings.
In today's St. Petersburg Times , there's an article about Florida's Public Service Commission and their lackluster attempts to meet Governor Charlie Crist's ambitious alternative energy goals. To paraphrase the PSC:
Florida electricity businesses are resisting a extra formidable renewable portfolio standard, arguing that it'd power up prices for customers because the kingdom does now not have precise potential for wind or sun power.
More from the Times article:
Among the brand new draft provisions: Any new renewable energy tasks have to not exceed a 1 percentage boom in fee to purchasers. Renewable strength advocates accused the PSC workforce of adopting a double trendy, pointing out current requests with the aid of utilities to increase patron prices by means of more than 20 percent for creation of new nuclear flora.
I'm confused. Why is it OK to jack up my quotes to pay for a brand new nuclear power plant (and jack them up in advance of its eventual creation) however solar and wind tasks have a 1% fee growth cap?
I'm pressured too by using the statement that Florida does not have appropriate capacity for wind or sun electricity. I can type of see the wind thing. Florida appears to lack triumphing winds --the winds change directions too much for a turbine to paintings effectively. But the solar component mystifies me. I've heard it before, that Florida's doesn't have true sun capacity. But I've never heard that assertion made with any kind of evidence to returned it up. It's almost as though its a forgone end that sun may not paintings here and it makes no experience to me. Anyone? Anyone? Why won't it paintings here?
