A solar energy study published in June by California's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory is making headlines, as seen in The Mercury News.
That's because the report details how — and where — rooftop solar owners see the biggest savings. The good news is that 76% of households studied nationwide saw reduced energy costs, averaging $691. That's after deducting expenses for putting in the system, all according to a summary of the findings from Berkeley.
The savings are around $1,987 if the installation costs aren't factored out, per the study, which the experts call a rare examination.
"Few studies quantify the impact of rooftop solar on" energy burden, they wrote in an abstract published in the journal Nature Communications, via Springer Nature.
The analysis, which included 500,000 households, had great news for low-to-moderate-income homeowners. The energy burden reductions were "most pronounced" for this group, ranging from $660 to $711.
The benefits are greatest in the West and Northeast, where energy costs are typically higher. The South registered the least benefit, due to low electricity prices in the region. Other factors also reduced the savings in certain situations, but most homeowners were in the black, all per Berkeley's report.
Absent from the analysis are longer-term benefits of using renewable energy. Solar panels do not release planet-warming fumes when generating power. They also have a life span of 30-plus years, offering free sunpower long after the systems are paid for, as the U.S. Energy Information Administration notes.
NASA has linked air pollution to increased risks for severe weather, which is causing more property damage. This, in turn, has caused some insurance companies to raise premiums or discontinue service in heavily storm-hit areas of the country.
While one rooftop solar setup isn't going to save the planet, it's part of a growing trend that can contribute to cleaner air in the future, hopefully mitigating some of the worst-case scenarios, feared by climate experts such as those at MIT News.
The Solar Energy Industries Association reports that the sector has experienced an average annual growth rate of 25% during the last 10 years. And it's easier than ever to become a part of the trend.
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EnergySage is a free, online tool that can help you identify all the tax breaks, find the right products, and hire the best installers. Solar installations can qualify for a 30% tax credit on setup costs, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. The benefit expires in 2035 unless lawmakers renew it.
"Our goal has always been to make clean energy more accessible and affordable for everyone, and this expansion allows us to reach an even larger audience," EnergySage COO Charlie Hadlow said in a press release in July about his company's marketplace expanding to all 50 states.
The growth is timely, as Berkeley's analysts have offered perhaps the best evidence yet that solar energy is a worthwhile, money-saving move.
"Rooftop solar effectively reduced energy costs for the great majority of U.S. adopters," the experts wrote in the Nature Communications summary.
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