Rolling Stone on Obama's Environmental Policy

Hello Readers,

I am in the process of researching the issue of US agricultural subsidies and their impact on the economy and the environment as part of my The Times Are A-Changin' series. I plan to start posting my findings in October.

In the meantime, I though I would share this with you... Last week, Rolling Stone magazine published an interesting piece on the things Obama can do without congressional approval to improve the US impact on climate change and the environment.

Check it out:
 http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/environment-ten-things-obama-must-do-20110914

Enjoy,

Sean

Response to Inaction on PA HB 1580

Hello Readers,

Tuesday, I woke up two hours earlier than normal to attend and speak at a breakfast-time discussion at Bucks County Community College about promoting solar energy jobs in Pennsylvania. The discussion took place in a warehouse-like room that is typically used to train clean energy professionals and students. There were two- to three-dozen people in attendance, and I was among the 8 or 9 speakers who represented a variety of solar jobs stakeholders, including several solar photovoltaic installers, a photovoltaic system owner, and a man from a veteran’s clean energy jobs training organization.

After all of the speakers had their opportunity to talk about the recent legislatively-induced turmoil in the Pennsylvania solar renewable energy credit (commonly SREC or officially SAEC) market, General Assemblywoman Tina M. Davis of Bucks County stood to respond to the speakers’ comments and take questions from the attendees.

The conversation that followed was quite lengthy and at times heated (and hopefully informative to the assemblywoman and the legislative aides of others who were in the room). Two points stuck with me as I drove back to my office in West Chester that morning.

The first point was brought up by one of the attendees, who indicated that Representative Chris Ross’ House Bill 1580 had 80 co-sponsors (out of the 203 members of House General Assembly – roughly 40%). That means that 40% of the House (including Democrats and Republicans and urban and rural representatives) have not only said that they would vote for the bill but are interested in personally putting their names behind the bill!

However, Representative Ross has not introduced the bill to the floor because he believes it is likely to fail. This leads me to the second point, which was brought up by Rep. Davis when she asked whether or not we had hired lobbyists to promote our cause. She also told us (the attendees in general and solar photovoltaic installers and small business owners specifically) directly that we need to put more effort into getting the attention of legislators.

I personally responded to this remark by telling her that many of us (well over 50 installers) had participated in a grassroots ‘lobbying day’ in Harrisburg. She also told us that ‘lobbying days’ in Harrisburg were not enough. To clarify, more than 50 small business owners and solar photovoltaic installers took time from their workday to walk through the capitol building in Harrisburg, going into legislators’ offices talking to the legislators (and their staffers) and handing them a two-page summary of the issue and the bill. This is apparently not enough.

I recognized from the beginning this was not enough, which is why my company has sent information to all of our previous clients and urged them to contact their legislators. It is also why I have spent a week’s worth of time at work in the past three months contacting my representatives, encouraging others to do the same, and showing up at events like the breakfast that morning.

This brings me to my main point. While my company is surviving thanks in large part to our new, second office in Massachusetts and other out-of-state installations… while the typical payback time for a solar installation in Pennsylvania has gone from 4-7 years to 9-12 years even as installation prices continue to fall…while we have had to lay-off workers due in large part to the stalled Pennsylvania solar market… while all of this has happened, Pennsylvania state legislators have dragged their feet on the issue and looked the other way.

Even my own representative, the Honorable Dan Truitt, who has at least two solar installation companies and numerous photovoltaic system owners in his district has offered a lukewarm response to my multiple requests for him to support the bill. He has claimed it is a conflict of interest for him to support HB 1580. He explained that he is in the process of installing a system on his house, which will mean he will see some economic benefit from the bill passing.

I have a solution to that conundrum. Representative Truitt, please pledge to vote for HB 1580 and donate the roughly $1200 of additional annual income to a local charity. Problem solved!

The bill will help add stability to the solar photovoltaic market and save the thousands of solar energy jobs that exist in Pennsylvania. These thousands of jobs are not simply disappearing because of unfixable or intangible causes. The jobs are going to other states with more stable market regulations and more profitable SREC markets. Certainly, this benefit outweighs the benefit any lone homeowner (or state representative) will receive from a residential solar installation.

The investment money is pouring into and will continue to pour into US solar installations at least for the foreseeable future. The question is will Pennsylvania legislators act in time to bring that investment money back to PA (It has already left!) in time to save the thousands of existing solar energy jobs in the state?

Or will the legislators remain inactive leaving installers with the choice between the unemployment line and a move out-of-state? Will legislators remain inactive, leaving utilities (and utility ratepayers) in a perilous position in a few years as the Alternative Energy Portfolio Standardcreeps closer to the 0.5% solar requirement in 2021 with fewer in-state installation crews available? Will legislators remain inactive, forcing Pennsylvania utility ratepayers to continue to subsidize out-of-state solar installations (and the associated jobs)?

The slow initial rollout of the requirement for Pennsylvania SRECs was designed with the expectation that the PA solar industry would not fully develop until around 2015 (the year where the hockey stick starts to bend). It was designed before the federal government removed the $2000 cap onthe 30% tax credit for solar energy installations, which has ensured that solar photovoltaic installations will remain financially viable in the US through 2017 as PV module manufacturing ramps up to bring down prices.

The Pennsylvania solar requirement rollout was also designed before the state invested (past-tense, already paid!) millions of dollars in the form of the Sunshine Rebate Program to help ensure that the solar energy jobs and private investment money were attracted to Pennsylvania rather than elsewhere in the US. The Sunshine Rebate Program attracted attention (and monetary investment) more quickly than was expected due to the high demand for solar energy when the payback period was reasonable.

Thanks in part to the federal and state incentives over the past 2-3 years, there is now roughly 4 times more solar photovoltaic energy generated each year in Pennsylvania than is required for the 2012 fiscal year (June 2011-May 2012). However, this is still significantly less generation capacity than will be required once the Alternative Energy Portfolio Standard is fully matured in 2021.

As a result, there will be a need for more solar installations in Pennsylvania before the decade is out. The Pennsylvania legislature needs to decide now (or rather 6 months ago) whether that need will be met smoothly with Pennsylvania citizens performing the installations (at a truly negligible cost to utility ratepayers and absolutely no additional cost to taxpayers) or through a rough and likely more expensive process starting in 2015 with out-of-state labor. Yes, the choice is that clear.

As I mentioned, PA House Bill 1580 works to resolve these issues but does not have enough declared legislative support to ensure its passage, which will need to overcome the long-standing and well-funded coal, oil, and natural gas lobby that understand and feel threatened by the long-term viability of the solar photovoltaic industry if it is allowed to get its wheels fully off the ground.

Legislators please take notice! Thousands of solar energy industry workers in Pennsylvania are depending on your immediate action to save their jobs. Tens of thousands of current residential and commercial photovoltaic system owners are waiting on your action to give them the financial payback they were promised. No one else is able to fix this situation. It is purely a legislative issue. It is your responsibility to fix! Act now!

Sincerely,

Sean Diamond

Hell and High Water: Texas Style

Hello Readers,

In case you haven't heard, Texas is on fire! According to an article on Think Progress, the amount of the state that has been burned so far this year is the size of Connecticut (3.6 million acres). Most recently, the Bastrop fire (map) "has burned approximately 600 homes and 30,000 acres, according to the Texas Forest Service. The fire has set a record for the highest number of homes lost in a single fire in Texas history."

 Of course, this is not just a standalone occurrence. It is the result of a multi-month heatwave and drought (a historic heatwave by any standard), and thanks to continuing climate change droughts and heatwaves are only going to be more and more likely over the remainder of the century.

For more details, I encourage you to read the Think Progress article: Hell and High Water Stoke Texas Blaze: “No One on the Face of This Earth has Ever Fought Fires in These Extreme Conditions”.

Stay Safe,

Sean

Alberta Tar Sands - pipeline decision

Hello Readers,

Yesterday, I came across post about Obama's current predicament about the XL Keystone Pipeline proposal. I recommend checking out the post as it offers many links to resources and provides a review of the considerations that the president must take.

Also, you can check out the author's interview about the topic below:




...it's a bit dry, but its fairly thorough.

Enjoy,

Sean