We had some really great threads last year, with the following four nominated for the Thread of the Year award in this January's Environment Site Awards ceremony.
Solar Energy ForumI have no doubt that we will be successful in harnessing the sun's energy.... If sunbeams were weapons of war, we would have had solar energy centuries ago. ~Sir George Porter
Buy 10 million dollars of solar panels and cover the building with them. They're just as pretty as any facade, and produce hundreds of kilowatts of power for use in the building.
Sorry, covering the whole building with solar panels and getting 24 wind turbines will provide them with TEN PER CENT of their energy? That's pathetic! And how long before they recoup their investment at that rate? Assuming they do, that is - presumably the panels have a limited working life.
And before someone says "It's not about the money" my point is that there's not much incentive for companies to do this if they're making a loss.
It would've looked better with any new facade, but it is great they chose this approach. It reminds people of green energy every day..... in theory anyway.
Sorry, covering the whole building with solar panels and getting 24 wind turbines will provide them with TEN PER CENT of their energy? That's pathetic! And how long before they recoup their investment at that rate? Assuming they do, that is - presumably the panels have a limited working life.
And before someone says "It's not about the money" my point is that there's not much incentive for companies to do this if they're making a loss.
And where are the windows?
It would have been interesting to see a comparison between the cost of installing those panels and some alternative form of renewable power, such as sourcing their energy (or some of it) from a renewable energy supplier.
I think this is a great idea! I am sure that if they do things such as turn off their lights at night and turn the A/C or heater lower during these times, they will make up for their investment in no time. Oh, and 10% of their electrictricity is now, FREE!
Oh, and they could always just buy offsets w/ the money that they are saving and somehow break even in the long run. Cheers!
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Affordable Solar Energy for Homeowners:
-No Equipment Costs
-No Maintenance=No Hassles
-A Fixed Electric Rate for 25 Years www.jointhesolution.com/porges37mer
I think this is a great idea! I am sure that if they do things such as turn off their lights at night and turn the A/C or heater lower during these times, they will make up for their investment in no time. Oh, and 10% of their electrictricity is now, FREE!
Oh, and they could always just buy offsets w/ the money that they are saving and somehow break even in the long run. Cheers!
Well it's not "free" since they probably had to borrow a lot of money to install the panels, this needs paying back + interest. There's also the cost of any maintenance/replacement that is required. They could also just turn off the A/C anyway, no need to have solar panels in order to do that. And carbon offsets are shite and don't work.
Agreed, for you and me, because hey, we do the best we can. But, for big corporations or people w/ money, I say if they want to help build a green energy infrastructure, that is fine by me. Cause that is all carbon credits are. Cheers
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Affordable Solar Energy for Homeowners:
-No Equipment Costs
-No Maintenance=No Hassles
-A Fixed Electric Rate for 25 Years www.jointhesolution.com/porges37mer
Over 7000 Solar Panels...On One Skyscraper!
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