How To Go Green In Hard Times

wsj.com:

It's tough to be green when money is tight.

Lots of big environmentally friendly changes look good in theory, like buying solar panels or switching to a hybrid car. The trouble is, many of those fixes take years to make back their cost -- and most people can't afford that luxury in these tough economic times.

Read the whole story: wsj.com

Comments

[SangZe]

Solar works! I have found it too expensive, though, so expensive, in fact, that it would not pay off in my entire lifetime should I install it. On the other hand, I do not understand what's so difficult in requiring all new housing to have solar panels as an essential part of the construction. It should be possible to eliminate entirely the need for externally-deliver electricity in the average home.

[sheila]

the whole premise of this article is wrong, because it artificially inflates the cost of REAL change (like rooftop solar) by just accepting that our government has no obligation to level the playing field it has subsidized fossil fuels in for a hundred years.

all we need are LOANS and FEED IN TARIFFS, so we can all put solar on our roofs and pay it off for about $1,000 a year - less than we are earning from the panels. THAT is not only a "zero payback" but it's a profit center. Big Energy owns and operates our government, which is why we keep getting CRAP ideas like a "supergrid" and "wind farms" when all we need are loans and per-kwh payments like 45 grownup countries already have.

call your reps and DEMAND that they shift all their Big Energy subsidies (like Giant, GHG spewing transmission lines) to RATEPAYER GENERATOR subsidies (like loans and payments for feeding excess power to the grid.). Have them change the $15,000 tax credit for buying a house into a $15,000 grant for buying a rooftop solar system. that is a much higher priority, AND improves property values...

it's OUR TURN to benefit from sustainable, clean energy policies that do NOT slaughter millions and millions of acres of wilderness. will you be part of the problem or part of the solution?

[SangZe]

Thank you.

[Greenguy25]

Solar Maid is the nations largest and fastest growing solar panel cleaning and maintenance company and they have seen a growth rate of over 800% for the last two years, so not everyone is failing to see the sun light at the end of the tunnel.

Go Solar

http://www.mygreenscene.com/thesolarmaidcompany/index.html

[solid]

I think about the hundreds upon hundreds of billions of dollars needlessly spent in Iraq and wonder how much renewable energy infrastructure the U.S. could have already had in place for that amount of money. It really makes me mad.

[Smithenergy]

These are some great tools to help each of us reduce energy use - here is another forum to find more.

Read the whole Post at: http://www.buildbabybuild.net/blog/bill-gross-idealab-founder-ted-2009/

[SonofLiberty1]

Have you looked at your electric bill recently? Charging 4 x for the electricity?
That's why we need Solar!