PATTY HAMMOND
Many believe solar power is better than using fossil fuels for energy. They argue solar technology has the potential to help the environment and make communities more energy independent. Federal and state incentives have also made renewable energy very attractive to developers.
As with any relatively new technology, solar energy is not all sunshine and rainbows. There are downsides and potential pitfalls to consider. It is only by addressing all the issues up front, and by planning carefully, that communities will benefit and avoid problems.
One of the first things people mention when considering solar energy in our area is the sun. There are significant seasonal variations in daylight hours in our region and, thanks to cloud cover from the Great Lakes, the sun doesn’t always shine brightly here. There’s no doubt that a solar panel in a cloudless Nevada desert will generate much more electricity than a panel in Western New York based simply on how often solar energy hits those panels. However, other countries that receive less sunlight per square mile than Western New York have been very successful at generating solar power. Even so, when the sun doesn’t shine, solar panels do stop generating. Yet our need for power doesn’t stop. That means solar power collected on sunny days needs to be stored for future use. Development of a transmission system, or building solar farms close to an existing one, is important here. Solar battery storage costs have to be included in that calculation.