http://money.cnn.com/2011/07/25/technology/solar-new-york/
According to a CNN article, 2/3 of all New York City skyscrapers could feasibly maintain energy-producing solar panels. If each and every one of said potential buildings actually installed solar panels, it could generate enough electricity to power half of New York City. A potential barrier to this proposition is the inability to store energy for days with bad weather – necessitating power plants to make up for solar deficits. Another barrier is cost – government assistance would be necessary to make solar a viable cost effective solution as external sources (nuclear, hydroelectric, etc.) are much cheaper. Solutions to such barriers could be found in Governmenet issued grants to fund research on minimizing solar costs as well as research in power storage. I personally feel that renewable energy is the way of the future and that as a society we need to be preparing for an inevitable energy crisis – a crisis that can be averted should we find a solution through solar power.
If power can be found in the sun and the wind, could it not be found in other elements of nature which bad weather wouldn't inhibit? I agree that using renewable resources should be the path humans take towards advancing society, but I also think that putting up solar panels in New York before we solve the problem of what to do (besides having backup power plants)during bad weather should be solved first. Secondly, the government hardly has the money to fund experimental research on something that may not have a solution. Also, if 2/3 of the buildings in New York can only power half of the city, then even if all of the buildings in New York could have solar panels installed, the entire city still wouldn't be powered by the sun. Though I pose these questions, I am in favor of it-- I just don't know how well it would work. Maybe if the government paid back some of its debt and had more money to work with, experimenting on a smaller city to test the effectiveness of solar energy would be more profitable in the long run.
ReplyDeleteI definitely believe that this is a good idea. With New York hosting 2.7% of America's population they should be finding ways to help the environment. I understand that it can only power half of the city - but that would still use less energy that we would have to produce. It isn't harmful to the sun to use solar panels so why not? Installing the solar panels would just take money that they would have to find. The solar panels would be more effective in the long run though. It would pay for itself over time. The idea of it being tested in smaller cities first is a great idea. They don't want to waste all the money installing them in a huge city like NYC and it not work as well as they had wanted it too.
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