One of my letters to the editor, hopefully its published in the next edition
Solar Power in BC is DIRTY POWER
Solar power
in BC isn’t “green”, google- “Give Yourself a Big Green Hug”.
SD10
received their solar system money from the Carbon Neutral Capital
Planning grant the
website states: carbon neutrality is about achieving net-zero greenhouse
gas emissions, yet solar panels in BC increase green house gases adding to our
carbon footprint!
Andy Shadrack extolls on the virtue of his solar system,
panels bought from China, likely made from Fernie coal mined with diesel equipment, onto
diesel trains, then bunker oil powered ships, to burn in chinese power plants
heating ores mined by diesel to over 3000 degrees, polluting chinese childrens
air and returned via all the same non renewables to make no power when we need
it, winter. Studies show the non
renewable energy required to make solar panels won’t be returned in their
lifetime, that could certainly be true at our latitude and annual sunshine.
Did anyone
understand Mr. Shadrack’s economic
justification for his solar system in his letter? I didn’t.
Here are the real calculations.
Here are the real calculations.
Mr.
Shadrack says his 2.4kW - $22,000 solar
system saves money?
Years
of solar data for sunshine in the West
Kootenays says 1kW of solar panels
might make 1kWh of power annually.
Almost all of it in summer when nobody needs it.
His 2.4kW
of solar panels x 1kWh/kw/yr= 2400kWh annually.
He pays
Fortis 9.8c/kWh, he will save 2400kWh x 9.8c/kWh=$235
annually.
His $22,000
system at 3.5% for 20 years is $1540 annually. $1540 to save $235 is saving money? He says it will create jobs,
if his system lasts 20 years, it likely took a couple man days to instal
his chinese solar panels, hardly a job
creation program! He is paying 6
times as much for his dirty solar power than if he did nothing. If it was his cash, conservative investments
are making better than 6% these past years.
$22,000 at 6% with the magic of compounding interest will be over
$75,000 in 20 years. In 20 years Mr.
Shadrack will have toxic solar panel junk, and have paid 6 times more for his
dirty solar power that increases BC’s carbon footprint and have no money to buy
the next set of panels to make dirty power.
Those of
you in Nakusp and New Denver, look at your school solar panels, each one from
November through February might make 50 cents worth of power, about 12 cents
per month!! There is public data on the
internet at “enphase public systems”. Zoom into Nakusp, the 48 panel commercial system is the one on the school. The data shows for December and January it
might have made $5 each month. Its time
to stop picking the public pocket for something that can’t help us. The Nakusp $150,000 microhydro on their city
water system makes $100/day and will for the next century or more. The NSS ($112,000)and Lucerne ($38,180)solar panels about the
same cost, might make $12 a day and
last maybe 25 years and become toxic junk.
Nelson is picking my pocket for their community solar garden. I asked the hydro manager at the budget meeting what makes solar power green, his reply -“nobody said it was green”.
This Nelson solar garden is likely the most absurd greenwashing project on the planet.
A city with its own hydro dam, our printing press, our money machine, saving 36% on our taxes. Water power made for 2c and sold for 10c. It’s a phoney political stunt that lets the misinformed buy in at some token price that everyone else subsidizes.
SD8 is one of the biggest purchasers of 10 solar panels in the community solar garden. Maybe they could fund the cities spring pothole patching budget too? One of SD8’s $1000(subsidized) solar panels will in a year make the power our dam makes for $5.
I thought schools were broke. The SD8 manager says it will reduce emissions and give administration an idea of how to cut costs and be energy efficient. The years of data from their $25,000 grant high school solar demonstration system doesn’t tell them?
When will this waste stop?
Max Yanke
Electronics
Supv. (ret’d)
Nelson
