Iowa Global Warming

Benjamin Julian, Environmental Law & Policy Center’s Iowa intern; wrote a letter to the editor for the “Des Moines Register” published in the Sunday Feb. 7 “opinion” page.

A New York Times Jan. 31 article, “China Leading Global Race to Make Clean Energy,” discussed how China is getting ahead of the curve when it comes to clean-energy production.

Though many would find this ridiculous – due to China’s history of environmental degradation and frenzied industrial development – the consequences are very real.

Now, more than ever, green jobs are moving overseas due to a concerted effort to stall clean-energy development in the United States.

In no way are President Barack Obama’s plans for clean energy perfect, but the United States is falling dangerously behind on creating a favorable market for renewable energy.

The ideological battle between Republicans and Democrats in Washington has severely hampered the nation’s ability to produce the next generation of infrastructure and energy. Instead, we have instances of Chinese companies contracting out to wind farm operations in Texas.

Of Iowa’s five major wind-turbine manufacturers, two are from Europe. When will America catch up when it comes to renewable energy?

Full story here

A window of opportunity is opening for solar power in the Midwest. The Environmental Law & Policy Center is working to ensure that we seize this opportunity promote solar power development that creates new jobs, spurs economic growth and helps to solve our global warming pollution problems.

Why the time is right to ramp up solar power in the Midwest:

• The economic outlook for solar power is the best it’s been in many years. Solar photovoltaic (PV) module prices have come down to historic lows and recent federal energy legislation and the economic stimulus package are making solar projects more affordable.

• Solar power can bring good returns on investment by meeting our needs during times of peak electrical demand. When we use higher than average amounts of energy, utilities need to buy power on the open market at very expensive rates. Peak demand happens during daylight hours and especially in the summer. Solar power matches up well with pricey peak demand times.

• Former industrial sites in the Midwest can be revitalized as solar power plants. These sites can house 10 – 20 MW projects, large enough to make economic sense and small enough to fit onto the grid. Locating solar plants on older industrial sites gives them unobstructed sunlight and low-cost access to the electrical grid.  The new 10 MW solar plant South Side of Chicago is a perfect example.

• In the current economic downturn, there are plenty of skilled workers looking for “green jobs” like installing solar systems.  Federal and state job creation grants, subsidies, credits and training programs for green jobs are all making it easier to hire workers. The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers is (re-) training new skilled solar installers at facilities in Illinois, Indiana and other states.

• State and federal policies are working to support solar power. For example, Illinois added a provision to the state’s renewable energy standard that will drive a market for 700-750 megawatts of solar power in the state by 2015.  Midwestern states are streamlining rules for connecting solar to the grid and creating net metering standards that will help solar generators get a good price for the power they generate. Expanding net metering policies to cover larger projects will boost 

solar even more.

People might think solar power only makes sense in places like Arizona and Nevada. But there are some good solar sites here in the Midwest. We’ve got better solar intensity here than both Germany and Japan, the world’s largest solar markets.

What we’re doing:

The right policies can extend this window of opportunity into the future. The Environmental Law & Policy Center and our colleagues are advocating for an earlier ramp up of solar power in Illinois’ renewable energy standard.  We are working on feed-in tariff models in Michigan and with colleagues in Iowa to improve the state’s net metering policies.  As Wisconsin considers boosting its Renewable Energy standard in 2010, there may also be opportunities to include solar provisions.  We have an opportunity to gain solar policy improvements as the unusually low prices and federal economic stimulus incentives drive significant solar development.

Watch ELPC’s Webinar on Solar Power in the Midwest

Watch ELPC Executive Director Howard Learner talk about Midwestern solar power at the nation’s largest urban solar plant in Chicago.