Most of us do not have individual influence in how our energy provider produces its electricity. The choice you do have is to install electricity generating solar panels on the roof of your house (also known as rooftop photovoltaics).
The potential for using the sunlight as an energy source is enormous. Gian Pagnoni and Stephen Roche explain in The Renaissance of Renewable Energy, a book published in 2015. That Illinois is in a region in which the Sun’s “irradiance per square meter” averages “80 watts in the winter” and “240 watts in the summer” (102). Which averages, “with today’s photovoltaics (PV) technology, about 162 usable energy kWh/m2/year” after accounting for solar panels of a 10% efficiency level (110). This information tells us that Illinois is exposed to amounts of sunlight that are viable for PV energy production on rooftops, most houses have enough roof space to hold enough solar panels to generate as much electricity as the average house consumes. I will discuss this further on the next section of this research, but first, we shall examine our current sources of electricity. |
How much would you Pay to dump toxic chemicals into Lake Michigan and pump smoke into the air around your school or home? Although nobody would agree to pay to cause pollution, most of the energy we use comes from power plants which generate toxic waste that contaminates our environment. With this in mind, perhaps we should restate the question: How much would you pay to avoid toxic chemicals and smog being dumped into the ground, water and air? This question might seem to come from an "utopian" ideal. Though, is it really? is it possible to generate our electricity from a clean energy source, at a price many people would be comfortable with?
Instead of availing ourselves of the sunlight’s energy-potential to generate electricity. Most of the electricity generated to power our grid comes from fossil fuels. |
According to Electricity explained, Electricity and the Environment, an article published on the EIA’s website in accordance with the U.S. Department of Energy. “In the United States, about 67% of the total electricity generation in 2016 was produced from: fossil fuels (coal, natural gas, and petroleum), materials that come from plants (biomass), and municipal and industrial wastes. Emissions that result from combustion of these fuels include: Carbon dioxide (CO2); Carbon monoxide (CO) ... and Heavy metals such as mercury.” This is an enormous amount of contamination. To top it off, the grid’s next major source of power is nuclear plants with their enormous potential for contamination. With this in mind, it does seem like we might have to acknowledge that when we use electricity supplied by our grid we are paying to contaminate the world we live in.
How Do We Value PVs
As stated by the state’s attorney general Lisa Madigan “in 2007, my office successfully negotiated new legislation (220 ILCS 5/16-107.5) ... [and] net-metering” which state that Illinois electric utilities must meet energy efficiency and renewable energy requirements. These laws provide incentives for homeowners and businesses to install renewable energy systems. They also require that the utility providers participate in the program by allowing homeowners with a PV system connect to the grid to use it as a battery and back-up system. (This is called “net-metering” and I will explain it in the final part of this research).
Knowing that PVs on rooftops are legally and technologically viable brings us to wonder “how much does it cost?” For many people, the cost of the system might be a primary motivating factor. To be able to get more people to acquire a PV system and make the “clean energy switch,” we would need to find out what would motivate them to take that step.
In a survey I conducted at the College of DuPage, participants were asked to name the most valued reason to obtaining and using a PV system on their house. The answer that received the highest rating was “to promote generating clean energy,” this was valued even above “to save money.” Although those results tell us that most people agree with the idea of (and value) obtaining a PV system because it is good for the environment. Nevertheless, most of those participants expect that the net value of having the solar panels should save money. Less than twenty percent of participants said they would be happy with the system even if the savings generated did not cover over one hundred percent of the money invested. Combining the results of all participants, they expected about 32% savings on their overall costs for electricity. This tells us that while a few people might obtain a PV system even if it’s cost was similar or even higher than the cost of electricity from the grid, most people would probably not be motivated to acquire it if it doesn’t cause them to save money.
Knowing that PVs on rooftops are legally and technologically viable brings us to wonder “how much does it cost?” For many people, the cost of the system might be a primary motivating factor. To be able to get more people to acquire a PV system and make the “clean energy switch,” we would need to find out what would motivate them to take that step.
In a survey I conducted at the College of DuPage, participants were asked to name the most valued reason to obtaining and using a PV system on their house. The answer that received the highest rating was “to promote generating clean energy,” this was valued even above “to save money.” Although those results tell us that most people agree with the idea of (and value) obtaining a PV system because it is good for the environment. Nevertheless, most of those participants expect that the net value of having the solar panels should save money. Less than twenty percent of participants said they would be happy with the system even if the savings generated did not cover over one hundred percent of the money invested. Combining the results of all participants, they expected about 32% savings on their overall costs for electricity. This tells us that while a few people might obtain a PV system even if it’s cost was similar or even higher than the cost of electricity from the grid, most people would probably not be motivated to acquire it if it doesn’t cause them to save money.
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Works Cited:
“Electricity Explained, Electricity and the Environment,” EIA Independent Statistics & Analysis. U.S. Department of Energy, 22 Nov. 2017, www.eia.gov/energyexplained/index.cfm?page=electricity_environment. Accessed 8 Apr. 2018.
Grupp, David. “Solar Panels in Illinois.” Survey. College of DuPage. 4 Apr. 2018.
Madigan, Lisa. “A Message from Illinois Attorney General.”
www.illinoisattorneygeneral.gov/environment/Saving_Through_Net_Metering.pdf. Accessed 24 Apr. 2018.
Pagnoni, Gian Andrea, and Stephen Roche. The Renaissance of Renewable Energy. New York. Cambridge University Press. 2015.
Grupp, David. “Solar Panels in Illinois.” Survey. College of DuPage. 4 Apr. 2018.
Madigan, Lisa. “A Message from Illinois Attorney General.”
www.illinoisattorneygeneral.gov/environment/Saving_Through_Net_Metering.pdf. Accessed 24 Apr. 2018.
Pagnoni, Gian Andrea, and Stephen Roche. The Renaissance of Renewable Energy. New York. Cambridge University Press. 2015.