December 8, 2021
On November 12, 2021, the U.S. Congress passed a key part of President Biden’s agenda (and solar policy): a $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill. It contains plans to invest $550 billion in American infrastructure over the course of five years. On the same day, Biden announced that the first version of the Build Back Better […]
May 11, 2021
Solar power generation is growing in popularity since the presidential election. And President Biden has indicated that he will be tightening U.S. emission standards to meet global environmental goals. In response, several major automobile companies have moved forward their manufacturing deadlines for electric vehicles (EVs). So today we will explore the role of solar electricity […]
October 29, 2019
As I have often mentioned, the solar installation process can at times be fairly maddening (see The Five Stages of a Solar Installation, Parts 1, 2, and 3). That’s partially because it is more of a major construction project than initially meets the eye, but mostly because there are so many players involved in the […]
April 3, 2019
Lots of people have talked about how we as a species tend to treat really big – but slow – change with lethargy. Basically, we’ll spot the lion that leaps out at us and act quickly, but if the lion is silently tracking us for several days we may be none the wiser. Or the […]
February 21, 2019
We can all rest a bit easier now that the Polar Vortex has come and gone. The cold was not only deadly, but it most certainly left in its wake frozen pipes, spiking heating bills, and other issues for homes, properties, and sadly several unfortunate people that died in the cold. For most of you, […]
July 16, 2018
I admit I get a little up in arms when fossil-fuel industry lobbyists and utilities disguised as non-profit organizations spout unsubstantiated, anti-solar propaganda that confuses and misleads people. So when an Opinion piece called Hey solar industry, why the subsidy? appeared in New Hampshire Business Review, I felt compelled to respond. I appreciate that the magazine’s […]
June 20, 2018
I rarely use The Energy Miser to encourage outreach by solar supporters to government leaders. There are plenty of solar advocacy blogs (Mass Solar, Vote Solar, SEBANE, etc.) doing that job very effectively. But Massachusetts is at a crossroads as I write. The solar progress of the previous administration is being trampled on by current […]
April 10, 2018
Update: In summer 2018, the Massachusetts Legislature approved an energy bill that made some changes to this situation. However, those changes are not crystal clear. It appears Eversource’s MMRC, as approved by the DPU, will not go into effect as planned. However, the utility can re-submit a new MMRC to the DPU. More information will […]
November 14, 2017
Why is solar like cars, the Internet and mobile phones? Is it crazy to think solar could meet 100% of the Earth’s energy needs in 12 years? Will the U.S. become a global leader in solar, or will we remain behind China, Japan and Germany? This short, fun video from act.tv — called Solar Power […]
August 10, 2017
I am an O.C.E. The term, coined by Kip Andersen, stands for “Obsessive Compulsive Environmentalist”. As an O.C.E., I’m always looking for more ways to recycle. Seriously, it physically pains me to throw things away. For almost a year now I’ve been recycling plastic film. But many people don’t know that this kind of plastic […]
