The City of Angels and eternal sunshine announced one of the most ambitious solar plans of any city to date, with a commitment to get 10 percent of its energy from solar sources by 2020 through a combination of solar farms just outside the city and small-scale solar rooftop installations. Los Angeles will provide incentives for these rooftop installations and promises to subsidise solar for low income households.
The goal of the Solar L.A. plan is to reduce fossil fuels and the city’s impact on global warming (as a former resident, I can attest to the great need to clean up the air) and to create a thriving clean technology industry. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has made several announcements recently about plans for a greener L.A., including attempts to attract clean technology companies and investing city pensions in eco-friendly businesses.
The development of Solar L.A. will be interesting to watch as the challenges presented will likely be similar to those faced by other cities, as well as on a national level — unknown costs and financial impact, regulatory hurdles such as opposition to building a solar plant in the desert, and the logistical/technological effects of shoving more energy onto an already ailing power grid. Wall Street Journal’s Environmental Capital blog discusses some of these challenges. In spite of the difficulties, I commend L.A. for being the guinea pig.
