It’s been just over six months since Hurricane Sandy swept the eastern seaboard, leaving both destruction and devastation in its wake. In the aftermath of this natural disaster, parts of the East Coast – and New York and New Jersey in particular – were left without power for weeks. An extended loss of power, whether caused by a natural disaster or other event, isn’t only inconvenient: it can be potentially life threatening. Many families were…

The price of California residential solar continues to fall, according to a new report by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, located at U.C. Berkeley. The annual study found that the average cost per watt for installing small photovoltaic (PV) solar energy systems (less than 10 kilowatts [kw] of capacity) went from $6.40 in 2011 to $5.70 in 2012, representing a decline of 12 percent. For medium systems (10-100 kw), the mean per-watt installation price decreased from $6.00 to…

If you’re like most people, your top priority is ensuring that you and your family are living in a safe and healthy environment. You reduce, reuse and recycle. You buy organic and choose the foods you feed your family with care. So, when it comes time to choose what type of energy will power your home, it only makes sense that you’d want to choose the best. Solar power has long been lauded as a…

We sometimes talk about utility-scale solar projects on this blog and how these are helping the state increase its reliance on California solar energy. But that begs the question of whether they’re a better way for the state to expand its solar resources or if the future lies instead with distributed generation and the residential solar energy solutions that West Coast Solar installs on customers’ houses. Recently, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) held an auction for the…

Solar energy has been an enormous success in California. The state leads the nation in solar generating capacity and solar industry employment, and it also has the most friendly legislative climate for renewable energy. But according to a report by the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs and commissioned by the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), the state’s leadership in the industry has the potential to expand well beyond where it is currently. All we have…

Assembly Bill 327 has passed both houses of the California legislature and now awaits Governor Jerry Brown’s signature. The landmark legislation will make changes to California’s solar energy policy that should make it easier for residents to take advantage of net metering and switch to renewable energy. The bill will lift a suspension of net metering that was to occur at the end of the year. Power customers will now be able to move forward with their…

The U.S. Department of Energy has made renewable sources one of the main focuses of its agenda and regulatory framework. As a result, the agency that regulates the nation’s energy infrastructure has made it a priority to bring the cost of going solar to a level that would make it competitive with conventional fossil fuel energy. This effort, called the SunShot Initiative, consists of several programs designed to incentivize utilities, researchers and engineers to make solar power affordable…

One demographic that has a lot to gain from going solar is that of seniors and retired persons. Solar panel systems save their users thousands of dollars in the long run, which is important for anyone on a fixed income looking to reduce expenses wherever they can. Additionally, because retirees typically stay in the same home, they need not worry about what to do with their panels if they move, such as bringing them along…

When it comes to renewable power, there are a handful of Hollywood celebrities who are leading by example by living sustainable lifestyles and investing in solar energy solutions for their homes. Let’s take a look at some stars who put the environment first: Bill Nye – This well-known scientist and TV host lives in a green home in Southern California. “I have 18 solar panels, each about three feet by four feet,” Nye wrote in a…

Despite the fact that residential solar energy solutions present significant benefits to electric utility customers and the state economy, there is a lot of misinformation being circulated about this technology. Consequently, many citizens remain uninformed about Bay Area solar energy. To address this problem, let’s review some of the facts about solar power, courtesy of CleanTechnica, a green technology news site: Americans who purchased a solar panel installation in 2011, when solar modules were more expensive than…

There has been some exciting news happening throughout the United States in regards to renewable energy. For example, a recent report published by GTM Research and the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) revealed that nationwide solar power capacity grew 76 percent in 2012 compared to the previous year. As these initiatives continue to gain momentum, we thought it would be worthwhile to take a look at some of the most significant solar projects that have…

Most people who are familiar with the benefits of solar power are aware that they can save thousands of dollars over the life of the system through rebates and tax incentives. It’s also well known that solar energy is clean and produces no carbon footprint, meaning that the more people use this technology, the less they contribute to climate change. But these aren’t the only advantages of photovoltaic (PV) rooftop systems, like the ones that West…