A solar program for low-income housing, funded by revenues from California’s carbon cap and trade program, is paying off in cheaper energy and better home comfort for people in one of the poorest neighbourhoods in Los Angeles.
The program, run by the non-profit Grid Alternatives, “recruits volunteers to help implement California’s US$162-million Single Family Affordable Solar Homes incentive program,” CBC News reports. For 68-year-old Bertha Dortsch, who lives in the Inglewood neighbourhood, the free solar panels she received through the program mean a 25% reduction in energy costs, and less pressure on a hot day to choose between food and air conditioning for herself, her granddaughter, and two foster children.
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“For years, low-income families have been indirectly paying for solar programs through ratepayer fees or taxes, but haven’t been able to afford to take advantage of the long-term savings offered by solar,” CBC notes. For Grid Alternatives Vice President Stan Greshner, that translates into another moral argument for a low-income solar initiative: “There’s an interest in ensuring that low-income families are a part of the solution and not the only ones left on the grid to pay for the grid.”
With states like California, New York, and Colorado committing to low-income solar programs, Greshner sees the nearly 50 million U.S. households that earn less than $40,000 per year as a “huge untapped market.”
“It’s the right thing to do,” he said. “We need to make sure all communities, all families, are part of our nation’s transition to a clean energy future, and we must now focus on the low-income segment in order for that to be true.”
Grid Alternatives solar installation supervisor Nicolas Gomez previously worked for the United States’ biggest solar installer, spending most of his days in wealthy areas like Palm Springs. “So staying local right here and installing solar where it makes an impact in my community really means a lot to me,” he told CBC’s Kim Brunhuber. “I just don’t see it as a luxury. I see it as the future.”
