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Do You Know Where Your Power Comes From? Hint - It probably isn’t local.
There are many advantages to going solar, and you’ve heard them before: reduced emissions, decreased energy bills, more jobs, environmental benefits: the list goes on!
But did you know that solar is also good for the health of the electrical grid, which financially benefits our communities?
Many people don’t often think about where their electricity is coming from when turning on the lights or starting the coffee maker in the morning. But, the electricity generated to make your household items work is often traveling hundreds, even thousands of miles. This travel takes up energy, resulting in the loss of available energy for the consumer. You may hear this referred to as transmission loss, which is pretty inefficient. A key solution to combat transmission loss is called distributed generation, which uses localized energy sources, like solar power, to generate electricity closer to where it’s being used.
Here are a few key advantages of distributed generation:
Localized energy saves ratepayers money.
The growth of solar is critical to reaching our state and national climate goals. The Solar Energy Industry Association’s 30×30 study states that distributed generation needs to grow 2-4x faster than the previous decade (2010-2020) in order to reach national climate goals at the lowest cost possible. The study also finds that scaling up distributed solar and storage saves all ratepayers over $109 billion by 2030 compared to deploying utility-scale renewables only. By adding more local solar and storage, the creation of more than 1.2 million new American jobs is anticipated by 2030.
A study by Vibrant Clean Energy showed that New York could save $28 billion by 2050 via solar PV and storage. These savings would lead to a 20% reduction in the energy burden taken on by consumers, saving them an average of $1343 per year by 2050. The study also found that investments made in distributed energy resources would substantially flow towards disadvantaged communities. The models show that more optimized solar distribution solutions keep benefits more localized and increase economic development, and the most optimized distributed energy solution allocates 2% more resources to disadvantaged communities.
Helps the local economy
As the EPA points out, the use of solar energy through distributed generation has become cost-effective for businesses and homeowners, and many “states and local governments are advancing policies to encourage greater deployment of renewable technologies due to their benefits, including energy security, resiliency, and emissions reductions.” With the passing of the Inflation Reduction Act, new and additional incentives further encourage the growth of distributed generation throughout the country.
Reduces energy strains and costs for the grid
Solar panels can be most helpful in the middle of the day in the summer – a time of peak energy draw from and stress on the electrical grid. When energy needs are highest, so are energy rates, so by producing solar onsite, you reduce energy needs and help keep costs lower for everyone.
Solar also reduces energy costs for the grid by allowing existing infrastructure to remain sufficient for the needs of the community. Transmission lines are capped in the amount of energy that can flow through at once, so when power draw is high, there is only so much that can pass through at one time. If solar is produced onsite for many homes and businesses, the transmission lines are not overloaded. When utility companies have to upgrade transmission lines to account for greater energy needs, that cost shows up in the customer’s energy bill. Therefore, by reducing the need for system upgrades, local distributed solar keeps costs low for all.
