Sunshine State lags behind in harnessing sun's power
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By JOSE DE WIT jose.dewit@scripps.com July 15, 2007Since he outfitted his Hobe Sound home with solar power, Greg Werner cut his household's electric bill by half.
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By JOSE DE WIT jose.dewit@scripps.com July 15, 2007Since he outfitted his Hobe Sound home with solar power, Greg Werner cut his household's electric bill by half.
John Rosaci sprung for solar power when he received a $486 electric bill one month — without running the air conditioner.
Before going solar, Rosaci and his wife, Sandy's, electric bill averaged $290. Once he installed solar power in his Palm Bay home, his bills dropped to $70.
Despite savings like these, few Sunshine State homeowners are going solar. Just last year, California installed enough photovoltaic panels — the flat surfaces used to capture sunlight — to power 100,000 homes. Florida installed enough to power only about 1,000.
But the amount of solar power produced in Florida could grow — and soon. A set of mandates Gov. Charlie Crist signed Friday at the close of a two-day summit on climate change in Miami could make it more cost-effective for families to use solar power.
One of the mandates Crist signed could almost triple the amount solar-powered households could save on their monthly electric bills. Another could make equipment like solar panels cheaper to buy and install in Florida.
Until now, companies that manufacture and install solar equipment have held back from doing business here because Florida has failed to provide incentives for the companies that make solar energy fixtures and the consumers who buy them, said Bob Reedy a director at the nonprofit Florida Solar Energy Center.
Reedy said with the rising price of energy and the falling cost of solar power equipment, Florida is ripe for a renewable energy revolution — provided the state does its part in encouraging solar energy.
One of the executive orders Crist signed mandates that Florida utilities produce at least 20 percent of their energy from renewable resources, which could encourage solar equipment manufacturers to do more business here.
Crist also is asking the state commission that regulates utilities like Florida Power and Light to look into "net metering," a system popular in other states for billing customers who produce their own renewable energy. The system could save homeowners with solar power as much as three times more money each month.
Most homes with solar panels are connected to their local utility grid. When their system produces less than they need, customers can draw additional power from the grid. When their systems produce more than they need, they can sell their excess energy back to the utility company.
But FPL charges customers about three times more than it pays when it buys back power. If the state forces utilities to adopt net metering, it would force them to buy and sell energy at fair rates from households that produce solar energy.
However, for solar to truly take hold in Florida, the state also needs to help put pricey solar energy equipment within the reach of average-income households, Reedy said.
Solar power fixtures are expensive to buy and install, with costs running in the tens of thousands for a typical home. That's why most states offer incentive programs to help make the purchase easier.
Many states, including Florida, reimburse homeowners for as much as half the cost of installing solar panels, as long as it's installed by a licensed contractor and the system is approved by either the Florida Solar Energy Center or the Solar Rating and Certification Corporation.
Rebates like these pushed Werner to outfit his home in Hobe Sound with solar panels and a solar water heater.
"The state paid for nearly half the installation costs, which is great," Werner said. "It's not every day the state actually helps increase the value of your home."
But other states have set aside hundreds of millions of dollars to fund their rebate systems, usually by way of a $1 tax added to utility bills. By comparison, Florida appropriated $2.5 million last year, and the fund ran dry before the end of the budget year. Lawmakers raised the amount to $3.5 million in this year's energy bill, which Crist vetoed saying it didn't go far enough.
Even with the rebate money, without net metering it will take the Werners 13 years for the solar panels to pay for themselves.
"It was more of a lifestyle decision than a consumer-smart decision," Werner said. "It was more about being responsible toward the environment than about trying to save a buck. The savings are just not quite there yet."
CRIST ENERGY MANDATES
To open the market to renewable energy technologies, Gov. Charlie Crist will require utility companies to adopt the following by Sept 1:
• Must begin working toward generating at least 20 percent of electricity from renewable sources with an emphasis on solar and wind energy.
• Reduce the cost of connecting solar energy and other renewable technologies to Florida's power grid.
• Enable commercial and residential customers who generate electricity from renewable sources to offset costs by adopting "net metering" where power provided by customers to the utility company counts as a credit for power used by the customer.
Before going solar, Rosaci and his wife, Sandy's, electric bill averaged $290. Once he installed solar power in his Palm Bay home, his bills dropped to $70.
Despite savings like these, few Sunshine State homeowners are going solar. Just last year, California installed enough photovoltaic panels — the flat surfaces used to capture sunlight — to power 100,000 homes. Florida installed enough to power only about 1,000.
But the amount of solar power produced in Florida could grow — and soon. A set of mandates Gov. Charlie Crist signed Friday at the close of a two-day summit on climate change in Miami could make it more cost-effective for families to use solar power.
One of the mandates Crist signed could almost triple the amount solar-powered households could save on their monthly electric bills. Another could make equipment like solar panels cheaper to buy and install in Florida.
Until now, companies that manufacture and install solar equipment have held back from doing business here because Florida has failed to provide incentives for the companies that make solar energy fixtures and the consumers who buy them, said Bob Reedy a director at the nonprofit Florida Solar Energy Center.
Reedy said with the rising price of energy and the falling cost of solar power equipment, Florida is ripe for a renewable energy revolution — provided the state does its part in encouraging solar energy.
One of the executive orders Crist signed mandates that Florida utilities produce at least 20 percent of their energy from renewable resources, which could encourage solar equipment manufacturers to do more business here.
Crist also is asking the state commission that regulates utilities like Florida Power and Light to look into "net metering," a system popular in other states for billing customers who produce their own renewable energy. The system could save homeowners with solar power as much as three times more money each month.
Most homes with solar panels are connected to their local utility grid. When their system produces less than they need, customers can draw additional power from the grid. When their systems produce more than they need, they can sell their excess energy back to the utility company.
But FPL charges customers about three times more than it pays when it buys back power. If the state forces utilities to adopt net metering, it would force them to buy and sell energy at fair rates from households that produce solar energy.
However, for solar to truly take hold in Florida, the state also needs to help put pricey solar energy equipment within the reach of average-income households, Reedy said.
Solar power fixtures are expensive to buy and install, with costs running in the tens of thousands for a typical home. That's why most states offer incentive programs to help make the purchase easier.
Many states, including Florida, reimburse homeowners for as much as half the cost of installing solar panels, as long as it's installed by a licensed contractor and the system is approved by either the Florida Solar Energy Center or the Solar Rating and Certification Corporation.
Rebates like these pushed Werner to outfit his home in Hobe Sound with solar panels and a solar water heater.
"The state paid for nearly half the installation costs, which is great," Werner said. "It's not every day the state actually helps increase the value of your home."
But other states have set aside hundreds of millions of dollars to fund their rebate systems, usually by way of a $1 tax added to utility bills. By comparison, Florida appropriated $2.5 million last year, and the fund ran dry before the end of the budget year. Lawmakers raised the amount to $3.5 million in this year's energy bill, which Crist vetoed saying it didn't go far enough.
Even with the rebate money, without net metering it will take the Werners 13 years for the solar panels to pay for themselves.
"It was more of a lifestyle decision than a consumer-smart decision," Werner said. "It was more about being responsible toward the environment than about trying to save a buck. The savings are just not quite there yet."
CRIST ENERGY MANDATES
To open the market to renewable energy technologies, Gov. Charlie Crist will require utility companies to adopt the following by Sept 1:
• Must begin working toward generating at least 20 percent of electricity from renewable sources with an emphasis on solar and wind energy.
• Reduce the cost of connecting solar energy and other renewable technologies to Florida's power grid.
• Enable commercial and residential customers who generate electricity from renewable sources to offset costs by adopting "net metering" where power provided by customers to the utility company counts as a credit for power used by the customer.
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