With our planet’s climate in crisis, people have begun to seek out solutions. One of the ways to improve our situation is through the mass installation of solar panels, which will help to replace the consumption of coal, natural gas, and oil (through electric heat and powering electric cars).
Why will companies such as Horizon Solar Power continue to enjoy success in the years ahead? This article will explain why the solar revolution is here to stay…
The cost of panels is plummeting
When solar was a cottage industry, prices were high, making it cost prohibitive to install. However, with China entering the solar market, economies of scale have begun to work their magic, with the price of electricity generated by panels cratering by 80% in just the past several years.
This has had the effect of lowering the per kilowatt cost of solar energy to be competitive or even cheaper than energy derived from fossil fuels.
The repeated closures of coal mines and coal-fired power plants over the same period of time is no coincidence, as the sole argument behind the continued use of fossil fuels (cost) is being invalided as we speak.
Big names in industry and politics are lining up behind it
In previous decades, captains of industry and our elected officials have had attitudes toward solar that ranged from indifference to hostility.
With the effects of climate change being starkly obvious in 2016, and with cost advantages that are making this form of renewable energy difficult to ignore, entrepreneurs are streaming into the solar space, and career politicians are being to champion their cause, lest they lose face with voters.
Elon Musk has led the charge on the side of private enterprise, with his advocacy of solar and the creation of the Powerwall making the achievement of a decentralized power grid an attainable reality.
On the government side, leaders from Angela Merkel to Barack Obama have spent their political capital to help advance the cause of green energies like solar in the face of entrenched opposition from the fossil fuel industry. For every setback, these victories are moving the world steadily towards a future powered by the sun.
A growing list of nations has gotten 100% of their energy from renewables
For all the pessimism surrounding the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energies, a small but growing number of countries has shown that such a future is possible.
Nations like Costa Rica, Germany, Scotland, Iceland have powered themselves fully on water, wind, and sun for periods of time in the past few years, giving us a glimpse of what is possible in the near future.
Carbon taxes are being instituted around the globe
With the effects of atmospheric carbon dioxide being thoroughly proven to have a positive correlation on a warming and chaotic climate, policymakers have begun the process of placing a price on the substance responsible for these adverse effects.
Canada is one of many nations taking the lead on this issue, as they have proposed taxes of up to $50 a tonne by 2022. With the price of fossil fuels being artificially increased by these measures, solar will look far more attractive as time goes by.
Our planet’s climate is at a crossroads
With our planet having increased in temperature by one degree Celsius in the past century, the resulting weather patterns has had disastrous effects already.
With further intensifying effects expected if the climate is allowed to warm further, we must act now to halt the increase in global temperatures. Embracing solar is one way to do that, and if current news is any indication, people are doing just that.