697 comments
I am writing as a member of a family which is "part of the solution" to global climate change. We put solar panels on our home and then added more two more times. While we are not totally "off the grid" we're doing our part to cut down our use of dirty energy. We had a hybrid car, which we passed on to one of our daughters when we bought a plug in electric car. We paid for our other daughter's solar panels to help her family with lower energy bills...and of course, to cut down on dirty energy use. As a family, we are doing whetever we can, but individual families cannot solve the big picture problem of climate change. That takes government and we hope that Virginia will become one of those states which truly is a leader in clean energy...for our air and water, for the good Virginia jobs, and for the better health of our citizens..
I want Virginia to be a leader in truly clean energy. For cleaner air and water, for good jobs and for better health for our citizens, this is too important.
Rooftop ‘distributed’ solar builds resilient and local energy into our communities. It creates jobs and give consumers energy choice and freedom. Virginia’s energy plan must recognize its unique value and set forth a vision and action steps in this context. I respectfully urge Governor Northam and the DMME to consider the following recommendations as part of the 2018 Energy Plan. 1) Provide incentives for solar coupled with battery storage as a resiliency strategy. Data from areas recently hit by weather disasters (Puerto Rico and Florida) demonstrate that on-site solar energy coupled with battery storage is the best way to provide resilient power during natural disasters. 2) Expand incentives and reduce barriers to customer-owned solar to create well-paying local jobs.According to data from the Solar Foundation, 84% of Virginia’s solar jobs are in the ‘distributed’ rooftop solar sector.. Rooftop solar, and the jobs it creates, depend on fair market access and incentives like net metering and third party ownership. It is hindered by utility-imposed standby charges, arbitrary limits on net metering and system size limitations. To grow solar jobs, Virginia needs to expand net metering, third party ownership and eliminate unnecessary barriers to customer-owned solar. 3) Discussion and action around grid modernization must include consumer participation as a key element. Virginia’s truly modern grid will be a two-way energy system that directs benefits and control back to energy consumers. Advances in rooftop solar, battery storage and electric vehicles now enable energy consumers to actively participate in their energy system. As such, conversations around grid modernization must include adequate input from consumers and ratepayers and adquately value solar distributed generation. Thank you for your consideration.
Aaron Sutch
The state through the department of education or otherwise could give local school systems the incentives they need to embrace solar. Solar would reduce their energy costs both with respect to existing schools and in schools planned to be built. Harrisonburg recently built a new elementary school with an energy efficiency of 11 kbtu/sf/yr, which is 4 times better than required by the building code and 6 times better than the national average for schools. Solar panels are being planned, which due to the energy efficiency of the structure will make the school a net zero energy building. The 2,000 schools in Virginia have the potential of generating a gigawatt of solar power, equivalent to a sizable power plant!
I also strongly suggest measures that would increase the probability that new commercial buildings and houses be adaptable to solar power. So many buildings are not suitable for solar for one reason or another, and this is a waste. Appropriate solar building code requirements could change this. If the building infrastructure is not used to harvest the sun, there will be needless waste of farm land devoted to solar farms.
Much can be done with parking lots, which now are deserts of ugliness and hot asphalt. These can be turned into generators of electricity, while at the same time providing shade for vehicles, saving energy from a/c's once the cars are underway.
The next decade is sure to provide both critical challenges and important opportunities as we move toward a cleaner and more flexible energy future. The ability to produce electricity from clean renewable sources at the location where it is used will be a critical element in this future. The last decade has shown us that the technologies for distributed clean energy systems like rooftop solar are “ready for prime time” creating thousands of well-paying jobs across the state as new small businesses contribute to real economic growth. These approaches also make electrical systems more resilient as threats to centralized production and distribution increase, whether from physical or cyber attacks or more frequent and intense natural disasters. The continued development of rooftop solar, along with improved battery storage will be critical to a successful energy future, and government policies should facilitate the development of these technologies. To create jobs, Virginia needs to expand net metering, third party ownership and eliminate unnecessary barriers to customer-owned solar. State policy should also provide financial incentives designed to provide access to solar for all Virginia citizens. Grid modernization that allows for a variety of distributed renewable sources of power will be critical if the “electrification of everything” is to provide the benefits that are becoming more imaginable each day.
In addition to the more specific suggestions I made earlier, I think it is important that the state of Virginia take a comprehensive approach to the design of the energy system. Indeed, the state has formed a number of energy and climate committees and should have lots of input on this problem. Basically, it is important to recognize that for the first time in a century, Virginia and all other jurisdictions are moving to new sources of energy and new ways of distributing and monitoring energy. The main driver for these changes is anthropogenic climate change, which necessitates reducing the use of carbon based sources of energy. This almost certainly means the widespread use of solar energy, wind and wave energy, which by its nature is distributed. Distributed energy has the advantages of being more secure, and in the case of Solar, closer to the load, and utilizing rooftops of existing buildings. The current energy model is based around centralized generation and the monopoly utility. This creates a tension between the current vested economic and political interests and what would produce the optimum design from an engineering, environmental and national security perspective. It is hard to imagine a 21st century system using wooden poles and catenary draped wires marring the viewscape. It is more likely that the new system will be composed of many microgrids connected by major transmission trunks. Building codes will require high energy efficiency and designed-in solar, not only on the roof, but also in the windows, parking lots, etc. Solar shingles will become the norm. Electric vehicles are likely to be part of the grid supply as well as demand. Cooperation between the central untility and distributed generation will be required. In short, the vested interests of the century old utility system should not dictate design. This means that the legislature and SCC must fulfill their governing role and design this system to be optimum for the environment, security, and economy. The monopoly granted utilities will need to be modified. The people and government must be in control of this restructuring, not the utility company.
As a Virginia resident and ratepayer, I urge the Department of Mines, Minerals, and Energy to prioritize distributed renewable energy in the update of Virginia’s State Energy Plan.
Our current electric grid is outdated, vulnerable to extreme weather events, and inadequate to meet our state’s energy challenges and to take advantage of the clean energy revolution. Instead of a centralized and static system, Virginia’s electric grid should be a two-way, democratic energy network with solar as the cornerstone that builds resilient, local power into our communities and gives consumers the choice to benefit from their own energy production.
Due to advancing solar and storage technology and declining costs, it’s clear that the key to the modern grid will be distributed rooftop solar coupled with battery storage and electric vehicles. Instead of relying on energy generated hundreds of miles away and transmitted through vulnerable infrastructure, solar plus storage allows us to power our grid safely with a dependable and affordable fuel supply that generates economic benefits and jobs throughout the Commonwealth.
I fully support rooftop solar as the cornerstone of a modern electric grid because it works. When I lived in a two room bungalow, just by opening my door on a sunny day I could maintain a temperature of at least 60 degrees even if the temperature were15 degrees outside. Imagine what I could have achieved if I could have afforded to put solar panels on my roof.
Promoting solar is absolutely a no brainer. There are just so many positive (and no negatives) associated with my kind of istallation. It makes sense from both a financial and environmental perspective. One way to start promotion would be to put solar panels on government and military buildings and schools. This simple technology should be much more wideapread.
As part of the plan, I recommend establishing an RPS that increases over time. For example, I suggest a goal of at least 15% coming from renewable sources by 2025, then it could increase to 25% by 2030 for example. Having such a goal sends a large signal to the market place about the stability of the investment environment and encourages private industry to invest more. I have 4 systems installed (2 PV and 2 solar thermal) and am not able to sell my RECs in a Virginia market. Even out of state markets, like PA and DC are closed now to out of state RECs. Being able to sell RECs is a key part of investment decisions by homeowners and private investors as observed in other states that have RPSs established.
I urge the Commonwealth to make rooftop solar a major part of the state's energy plan. As a homeowner and consumer, I believe rooftop solar provides Virginia citizens with greater choice, reduced energy costs, reduced dependence upon fossil-fuel power generation, and reduced demand upon existing utitilities and grids. More rooftop solar inevitably means less air and greenhouse gas pollution. Solar also holds great potential for creating new, clean jobs around the state. That is why I am installing rooftop solar panels on my home. It's a win-win-win.Given its climate and business-friendly environment, Virginia should become a leader in rooftop solar. Now is a the perfect opportunity.
Rooftop solar gives us a clean energy that can supply business, industry, and homes with an energy source for now and the future. It provides jobs as well. Please be sure to look closely at the information and give it your full support.
Every American property owner should strive to be energy independent. It is un-American to be reliant upon the government for anything. Virginia's state controlled energy monopoly reeks of euro-socialist bureaucrats who instead of incentivizing de-centralized entrepreneurship to citizens to make electricity and sell it back to the grid, sellout to the power industry for graft and control. Virginia – of all states – birthplace to Jefferson and home to many of our nation’s Founding Fathers fails to live up to the revolutionary legacy they are charged with upholding. How prepared are we for disaster when the power will fail and all but a few Virginians will have homes with solar capability? There is lack of vision in Richmond!
The state of VA needs to develop a range of energy solutions, to include solar, while creating and developing a state of the art industry that will create jobs, without polluting our air or water.
Time to stop being the gopher for Dominion Energy! Find some integrity.
It is time.
Virginia’s electric grid should be a two-way, democratic energy network with solar as the cornerstone that builds resilient, local power in our communities and gives consumers the choice to benefit from their own energy production.
Rooftop solar:
creates local jobs;
builds clean, local energy in our communities;
helps reduce energy bills and give consumers energy choice; and
works with battery storage to keep the lights on during a natural disaster - or a manmade one like what happended at Chippenham hospital in early July 2018
Solar power is the best power source in so many ways. Our policies should support the widespread adoption of solar roof panels as a real option for ordinary citizens, to encourage as many people as possible to go solar.
Rooftop solar needs to be supported at all levels as the future of power generation in a grid that integrates homeowners' and businesses' rooftop solar panels, batteries, and will accommodate the integration of vehicle-to-grid power storage as that becomes available.
Modern technology makes this doable so we can enjoy the benefits including lowering power costs, local jobs. cleaner air, democratizing power production, and minimizing the damage of power failures inherent in the aging traditional power grid.
Please include rooftop solar in your 2018 plan.
Virginia’s electric grid is easily compromised by hurricanes on the east coast and deep snows on the west. Rooftop solar, working with battery storage, provides an opportunity to interrupt those patterns. I encourage you to make it the basis of a network that builds local power in Virginia communities and gives consumers the choice to benefit from their own energy production.
In addition, rooftop solar has the potential not only to reduce the cost of energy, but to actively assist those living on limited budgets, especially those below the poverty line by reducing their energy bills. It also reduces the health costs created by the over dependance on fossil fuels, and is a reneweable source of energy. Also consider, that it will creates local jobs related to installation, storage and maintenance.
?Thank you for your consideration.
As owner of a Virginia clean enrgy firm for the last 18 years, a Virginia resident for 45 years, and an Adjunct Professor who teaches three interdisciplinary courses at The George Washingon University, of which one has been in Virginia for the last 7 years - I urge the State to develop a strategic plan for distributed renewable energy generation, energy storage, high-value energy efficiency with athe prime purpose for sustaining critical energy functions within the State.
On-site energy generation either atop or around buildings and infrastructure, combined with energy sorage will allow our state's first reponders - police, fire, ambulence sustain opertation, will allow interseecton signal lights andrailay crossings and lights to function in times of outages, Will incure our pipleines for water, sewage and fuels stay functioning. Will keep our cellular towers and networks operating along with our datacenters. Such emphasis will allow hospitals and nursing homes to operate, as well as businesses to continue operations and homeowners to be safe.
When the grid is working an emphasis on roof-top or ner-function to save money. When the electric grid is not completly functioning will allow continuity of operations, which tody is partially supported by on-site diesel electric generators which need ongoing operations and maintenance, ongoing regular testing, and rely on deliveries of fuel during unexpected evets to keep operating. This is not true with the entire portfolio of renewable energy, storage, CHP applications.
More and more people operate businesses out of their home, and even more people have at-home medical devices which need electricity from dialysis, ventillators, wheel chairs, and a host of other devices. Electricity has become even more central to our health safety, economy, and well being than ever before. Alsmot all these on-site energy options can leverage private capital investment, not public investent - becaise it makes solid economic sense.
The Virginia energy plan must drive the energy economy to be more resilient, agile, interoperable, reliable with much higher elcetric power quality (eliminating electric surges, sags and transients which ruin digital equipment).
The time to act is now, before some unplanned event severaly dmages our electric, water, communication and transportation networks.
Respectfully, submitted, Scott Sklar
Scott Sklar
President
The Stella Group, Ltd.
706 North Ivy Street
Arlington, VA 22201
DC Phone: 202-347-2214
VA Phone: 703-522-1195
E-mail: solarsklar@aol.com
Website: www.TheStellaGroupLtd.com
The Stella Group, Ltd.. is a strategic technology optimization and policy firm for clean energy users and companies, with a focus on system standardization, modularity, and web-enabled diagnostics. Scott Sklar is an Adjunct Professor at The George Washington University teaching two unique interdisciplinary sustainable energy courses, and an Affiliated Professor with CATIE, an international graduate university in Costa Rica offering graduate degrees on sustainability. Sklar is also part-time Executive Director of the non-profit Center for Small Business and the Environment, and Chairs the Steering Committee of the Sustainable Energy Coalition. On June 19, 2014, Scott Sklar was awarded the prestigious The Charles Greely Abbot Award by the American Solar Energy Society (ASES) and on April 26, 2014 was awarded the Green Patriot Award by George Mason University in Virginia.
His peer-reviewed paper on zero-energy buildings was published on zero energy buildings in 2013, “Perspective on multi-scale assets for clean energy technologies in buildings” and is available as 'Online First' on SpringerLink:http://www.springerlink.com/openurl.asp?genre=article&id=doi:10.1007/s10669-013-9475-0
"The Future of Personal Energy Use “ presented by Scott Sklar ... - TEDxTalkstedxtalks.ted.com/video/The-Future-of-Personal-Energy-U?Apr 7, 2015 ... The convergence of personal power with personal security, personal transportation, personal communication, and personal networking.
Coauthor of The George Washington University (GWU) Community Solar Handbook, October 2017
https://sustainabilitycollaborative.gwu.edu/sites/sustainabilitycollaborative.gwu.edu/files/image/Community%20Solar%20Handbook%20for%20Municipalities%20-%20Oct%202017.pdf
Resiliency, the Electric Grid & Renewable Energy. Solar Today. (pg 14) April 2018
http://www.omagdigital.com/publication/?i=486221#{%22issue_id%22:486221,%22page%22:14}
As a Virginia resident for 28 years, who has solar on her house, and has installed solar on several commercial locations including our children’s school, I am a firm believer in the power of rooftop solar to improve our Virginia energy mix. I have been to every Dominion shareholder meeting since 2008, so I feel I understand at some level the utility position and state status.
Rooftop solar is not inherently of interest to a utility such as Dominion, because it decreases the amount of power they can sell to residents and businesses. As such, it must be supported and nurtured by state-level planning and regulation. The state of Virginia lags very far behind neighboring states, and even far behind other states on the East Coast that have far less available solar. The cost of solar is so low right now, and the tax credits so beneficial, that this is the time to make a large push for solar on Virginia homes, businesses and municipal buildings. See http://solar.the-mcelroys.com/ for info on how to achieve year payback time for businesses and non-profits for rooftop solar.
Virginia is not even on the same page as neighboring states in terms of renewables installed. Bob Blue, in a speech at the Virginia Chamber of Commerce conference on Energy, Sustainability & Resiliency (May 10, 2016), characterized Dominion’s slow approach to renewables as a Kentucky Derby start where “the first horse out of the gate doesn’t always win.” The problem is that Virginia is so far behind in renewables at this point, that it is questionable whether they will ever catch up. Looking at EIA data on renewable generation for Virginia and its neighboring states from recent years, Virginia does not seem to be making any progress in closing the gap. From 2014 data, Virginia has 2.6% as much renewable generation as its neighbors, despite having (on average) 38% higher population. Looking at 2017 data, although Virginia has the potential for 50,000 jobs in solar, Virginia has less than 10% of the installed solar that North Carolina has.
Cities that have signed on to Readyfor100, and the Global Covenant of Mayors on Climate Change, will find it of huge benefit to have rooftop solar included in the Virginia Energy Plan.
Many other utilities and grids are recognizing the transformative possibilities of electric vehicles (EVs) as they become a larger fraction of the vehicle mix in our state. By utilizing the batteries of EVs during the day to shave the peak of required power, and to store the excess power generated during night and non-peak hours, these can provide an easy and low-cost storage method that can benefit all residents. The fact that EV storage was not even mentioned in the Dominion 15-year Integrated Resource Plan points to the fact that these capabilities must be defined by the state, and not left to the voluntary selection of the utilities.
I urge Governor Northam and the DMME to consider the following recommendations as part of the 2018 Energy Plan:
1) Provide incentives for solar coupled with battery storage as a resiliency strategy. Data from areas recently hit by weather disasters (Puerto Rico and Florida) demonstrate that on-site solar energy coupled with battery storage is the best way to provide resilient power during natural disasters.
2) Expand incentives and reduce barriers to customer-owned solar to create well-paying local jobs. 84% of Virginia’s solar jobs are in the ‘distributed’ rooftop solar sector -according to The Solar Foundation. Rooftop solar, and the jobs it creates, depend on fair market access and incentives like net metering and third party ownership. It is hindered by utility-imposed standby charges, arbitrary limits on net metering and system size limitations. To create jobs, Virginia needs to expand net metering and third party ownership and eliminate unnecessary barriers to customer-owned solar.
3) Discussion and action around grid modernization must include consumer participation as a key element. Virginia’s truly modern grid will be a two-way energy system that directs benefits and control back to energy consumers. Advances in rooftop solar, battery storage and electric vehicles now enable energy consumers to actively participate in their energy system. As such, conversations and actions around grid modernization must include adequate input from consumers and ratepayers.
In support, below is a collection of links showing the viability of large amounts of renewables in the grid.
NREL: renewables can supply 80% of US needs by 2050 with today’s technology
Example in San Francisco & NY of solar + storage for resiliency
Path for Virginia localities to 100% renewables
Apple 100% powered with renewables
US can supply 90-100% of needs with wind and solar, easily 100% if other renewable sources included
NOAA, CIRES study: “Our research shows a transition to a reliable, low-carbon, electrical generation and transmission system can be accomplished with commercially available technology and within 15 years.”
University of Colorado: US grid can be powered by solar & wind by 2030
Wind, solar and storage can power US grid 99.9% of the time, from Journal of Power Sources
Examples of state and utility successes, including integrating wind and solar
Methods for using solar and wind to meet US demand, from NREL
Low Carbon Economyby Goldman Sachs: solar and wind power will add more power globally than shale
Scientific American, Intermittent nature of renewables can be managed by combining them
Massachusetts utility getting “ahead of the game”
By 2030, Renewables Will Be The World’s Primary Power Source
This ConEd program represents one of the most ambitious U.S. efforts yet to turn lots of distributed solar installations into a flexible source of grid power that can replace electricity from the fossil-fuel plants that are typically used to supplement intermittent renewable energy.
Exploding 6 myths about renewables
US recent progress: Since 2008, electricity generation from solar has increased more than thirty-fold and electricity generation from wind has more than tripled.
Why Smart Utilities are investing in Distributed Generation
80% of US homes have good solar potential
NREL: Rooftop solar can provide 32% of Virginia electricity needs, and 40% of VA roofs are suitable for solar
Twice as many Virginians now work in renewables than coal
More at http://the-mcelroys.com/files/US_grid_transition_to_renewables.pdf
And see these links for communities that have committed to renewable energy:
http://www.go100percent.org/cms/
I wholeheartedly support maintenance of the earth for our clean energy for our children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, neighbors and their heirs and feel every decision should be made through this lens.
This means clean energy: solar, wind, water and believe that any responsible citizen does as well for As a consequence I support political groups and candidates who have hold similar principles.
I oppose offshore drilling, pipelines not intended to supply energy to local communiites, fracking and contamination of precious water resources, and any other utilitzation of the earth's resources to further increase the wealth of the wealthy.
Similarly, I oppose the use of my tax dollar and my utility payment to build enery resources like the pipeline that are of no benefit for Virginians and their heirs.
Thank you for your consideration. Ann Hays
I am a home owner and busines owner in Arlington, Virginia. I have purchased Dominion's 100% Green Energy REC's for years, and about two years ago installed solar on my home in Arlington.
Virginia's energy plan needs to support a dynamic, bidirectional grid that allows demand pricing and incentivizes both clean renewable production (solar, wind, hydro) and local storage (battery, electric car battery, etc.) to smooth out peak demand and make our energy grid more resilient.
My favorite part about solar is that it’s an industry people can believe in and be SECURE in. Jobs in dirty coal and petroleum are NOT secure. This should be a driving motivator. In an ideal world, we’d create a program to retrain and transition coal workers. These people have suffered greatly.
But of course, the crux is to take control of our energy security - indivually by forwarding rooftop solar, but also for society at large by breaking dependence on finite petroleum, with its horrific spill and explosion accidents. When we know about cleaner, less dangerous sources of power we’d be condemning ourselves to not run with it.
New York is making big strides, which is wonderful. Let’s be another state that sets the pace! Honestly, it’s how I’d measure whether it’s where I’d want to continue living. Please - make us proud (and use our money the way we request).
Thank you for the opportunity to comment. Lisa
We need a forward looking comprehensive energy plan that supports and encourages home owners, businesses, government entities, and Dominion Energy to implement solar energy methods and reduces our dependence on fossil fuels.
please eliminate the solar standby charges, solar has no line loss use to the home, reduces grid use in daytime during summer, which is peak, (lower strain), and is MUCH cleaner. standby charges dis-incentivize these benefits..
This is especially true when the impoverished person is given aid in acquiring the infrastucture needed to generate and store solar electricity. The money saved on the electic bill can go towards things like providing for children, starting a small business, and even buying books for college.
Watergate at Landmark is a 5,000 resident, 4 high rise residential buildings, surrounded by 34 acres of grounds, common-area buildings and recreational facilities. It is located in Alexandria's West End and opened in 1976. It is the largest condo in Northern Virginia.
For the condo, solar solves several difficult energy issues. It provides the rare opportunity to reduce extremely high electricity expenses. Distributed, roof top solar installation gives the condo the unheard chance to own its own electricity, and to have a future to give residents an electric vehicle recharging station; a power carwasher; or an outdoor basketball court lights, new electrical amenities they want. Given at little cost to the condo.
The condo is now planning a pilot solar installation. And, encouraged by the condo Board, several other ones.
Including distributed power, roof top solar installations in the Governor's energy plan will prompt other condo communities to take advantage of the benefits offered by solar.
I have had the opportunity of explaining the numerous benefits of solar power to more and more people lately.
It provides free electricity with zero carbon generation. It reduces the demand on distribution lines, eventually eliminating the need for high power-high voltage lines. The only organization not recognizing a direct short term benefit from solar power is Dominion Energy. Which also happens to have one of the largest lobbying efforts in our state of VA. Please base this decision on Science not political power.
The remainder of this text is a re-iteration of a previous commenter, Ruth McElroy Amundsen with valuable solar information that needs to be repeated.
Rooftop solar is not inherently of interest to a utility such as Dominion, because it decreases the amount of power they can sell to residents and businesses. As such, it must be supported and nurtured by state-level planning and regulation. The state of Virginia lags very far behind neighboring states, and even far behind other states on the East Coast that have far less available solar. The cost of solar is so low right now, and the tax credits so beneficial, that this is the time to make a large push for solar on Virginia homes, businesses and municipal buildings. See http://solar.the-mcelroys.com/ for info on how to achieve year payback time for businesses and non-profits for rooftop solar.
Virginia is not even on the same page as neighboring states in terms of renewables installed. Bob Blue, in a speech at the Virginia Chamber of Commerce conference on Energy, Sustainability & Resiliency (May 10, 2016), characterized Dominion’s slow approach to renewables as a Kentucky Derby start where “the first horse out of the gate doesn’t always win.” The problem is that Virginia is so far behind in renewables at this point, that it is questionable whether they will ever catch up. Looking at EIA data on renewable generation for Virginia and its neighboring states from recent years, Virginia does not seem to be making any progress in closing the gap. From 2014 data, Virginia has 2.6% as much renewable generation as its neighbors, despite having (on average) 38% higher population. Looking at 2017 data, although Virginia has the potential for 50,000 jobs in solar, Virginia has less than 10% of the installed solar that North Carolina has.
Cities that have signed on to Readyfor100, and the Global Covenant of Mayors on Climate Change, will find it of huge benefit to have rooftop solar included in the Virginia Energy Plan.
Many other utilities and grids are recognizing the transformative possibilities of electric vehicles (EVs) as they become a larger fraction of the vehicle mix in our state. By utilizing the batteries of EVs during the day to shave the peak of required power, and to store the excess power generated during night and non-peak hours, these can provide an easy and low-cost storage method that can benefit all residents. The fact that EV storage was not even mentioned in the Dominion 15-year Integrated Resource Plan points to the fact that these capabilities must be defined by the state, and not left to the voluntary selection of the utilities.
I urge Governor Northam and the DMME to consider the following recommendations as part of the 2018 Energy Plan:
1) Provide incentives for solar coupled with battery storage as a resiliency strategy. Data from areas recently hit by weather disasters (Puerto Rico and Florida) demonstrate that on-site solar energy coupled with battery storage is the best way to provide resilient power during natural disasters.
2) Expand incentives and reduce barriers to customer-owned solar to create well-paying local jobs. 84% of Virginia’s solar jobs are in the ‘distributed’ rooftop solar sector -according to The Solar Foundation. Rooftop solar, and the jobs it creates, depend on fair market access and incentives like net metering and third party ownership. It is hindered by utility-imposed standby charges, arbitrary limits on net metering and system size limitations. To create jobs, Virginia needs to expand net metering and third party ownership and eliminate unnecessary barriers to customer-owned solar.
3) Discussion and action around grid modernization must include consumer participation as a key element. Virginia’s truly modern grid will be a two-way energy system that directs benefits and control back to energy consumers. Advances in rooftop solar, battery storage and electric vehicles now enable energy consumers to actively participate in their energy system. As such, conversations and actions around grid modernization must include adequate input from consumers and ratepayers.
How may of you recall the "Oil Crisis" and the Christmas we were asked to not have Christmas lights ? Energy that comes from foreign sources can be turned off in the blink of an eye. We live in an age of energy driven lifestyles and reliable reasonabily priced energy has become the bedrock of our life. We need a forward looking policy for energy that helps secure a freedom from another "Crisis". Sustained growth of our Commonwealth comes from a broad spectrum of enterprises whcih all reach for electrical power to start their day and produce the valued goods and services that we know gives common wealth. Wind - Tide - Solar - Natural Gas - Coal - Nuclear all will be a necessary part of any Energy Plan. Choose wisely and nurture Nature as you formulate for we live and breath one generation to the next. Sustainable Energy should be a core of any Plan. Thank You
We have seen what devastation relying on the electrical grid produced in Puerto Rico. On site solar energy coupled with battery storage is the best way to provide resilient power during natural disasters. Also expanding incentives and reducing barriers to customer owned solar helps create well-paying local jobs. Virginia needs to expand net metering, third party ownership and eliminate unnecessary barriers to customer owned solar. Discussion and action around grid modernization must include input from consumers and ratepayers.
As a Virginia resident and ratepayer, I urge the Department of Mines, Minerals, and Energy to prioritize distributed renewable energy in the update of Virginia’s State Energy Plan. I have a grid-tied 5 KWt array on my roof which provides an excess of my electricity needs. Regulations and technology should be developed whch couple grid-tied power and distributed battery storage of power to provide a lower-cost, more environmentally responsible power system that is win-win-win for environment, homeowner, and utility.
Our current electric grid is outdated, vulnerable to extreme weather events, and inadequate to meet our state’s energy challenges and to take advantage of the clean energy revolution. Instead of a centralized and static system, Virginia’s electric grid should be a two-way, democratic energy network with solar as the cornerstone that builds resilient, local power into our communities and gives consumers the choice to benefit from their own energy production.
Due to advancing solar and storage technology and declining costs, it’s clear that the key to the modern grid will be distributed rooftop solar coupled with battery storage and electric vehicles. Instead of relying on energy generated hundreds of miles away and transmitted through vulnerable infrastructure, solar plus storage allows us to power our grid safely with a dependable and affordable fuel supply that generates economic benefits and jobs throughout the Commonwealth.
Thank you for planning wisely for Virginia’s energy future.
.
I am sure you are aware of what Germany did more than ten years ago: they decided to create 100,000 residential rooftop solar energy sources and it was so successful both interms of curbing global warming and bringing down Germany's contribution to ppm CO2, but was also economically advantageous, so they enlarged the project every year ever since. Why is America falling behind? Virginia must do better than other states who are not doing enough. Virginia is not doing all it can do, and we must. We must do everything in our power to stem the tide of overheating our planet and all its contents. Surely you will be proud of being on th right side of history on this critical issue. Represent the future and vote for residential rooftop solar. Vote against billionaires and for the people. The billionaires are sociopathic and by very definition, are not leaders. They have no empathy, neither for wild game going extinct and being tortured, nor for people like you and I.
Legislate for whateve will create the most rooftop solar, Virginia rebates to homeowners, education of the public, creating jobs in efficiency, rooftop solar, farmfield solar, offshore wind and create prosterity instead of pollution and global warming. There is no time like the present. There will be no time like the present if you do not do the right thing right now.
Thank you.
Gretchen Boise
Salem, VA 24153
The landscape for solar has changed greatly over the last decade, and Virginia policies need to adapt to make this energy from the Sun benefit its residents. Support distributed rooftop solar in the Virginia Energy Plan!
Advanced rooftop solar and storage technology will allow Virginia to power a grid safely with a dependable, clean, lower-cost option. An updated grid is needed that is not centralized but operates as a solar energy network benefitting the homeowner, the environment and the utility company. Everyone wins.
I am totally against further drilling, fracking or cracking of this planet to obtain fossil fuels. These fossils fuels mined from the depths of our planet will eventually dry up. Then we are left with useless pipelines that were very expensive for ratepayers like me to build. Pipelines running through Virginia and in our neighborhoods is not the answer. They carry fossil fuels with toxic and explosive potential that puts Virginians and water supplies in danger every day. The benefit (to who?) does not outweigh the risk. Especially when people like me want to benefit from their own energy production and utilize rooftop solar.
Please prioritize rooftop solar in Virginia’s State Energy Plan. Isn’t the sun getting stronger? This is a renewable source of energy that is not diminishing. Thank you for your consideration.
i am a business owner and shareholder of Dominion. It is the acceptable time to bring our energy production and our grid into the future to diversify and grow the economy of our great State. There is plenty of room for solar, wind and other traditional sources of generation to coexist and make our State a leader in energy alternatives and production.
Let us seize the moment so our kids and grandkids will say that was a good idea and they had the common sense to act on it.
I recently installed solar on my roof. The reason was NOT for any green arguments, but instead because the price point combined with net metering allows this to be a valid business case. As storage continues to decline in price, true distributed power is within reach and will greatly simplify the challenges of a resiliant energy grid--something we all want. Rooftop solar + storage is scalable, cost-effective, and benefits all Virginians because the outcome is a resiliant energy source, hence the justification for support from Virginia government.
Virginia must collaborate with other States to marshal competent engineering efforts to tailor the energy policy toward the most effective possible mitigation or reversal of anthropogenic global warming; nothing else should matter. Residents of Virginia need the Earth to continue to provide the conditions that enable human life, and the risk is high that the warming will push the physical parameters of the atmosphere and ocean outside of the envelope where life can be supported. The risk via massive crop failure, death of the phytoplankton, and other possible channels is severe and immediate and all energy policy must be directed toward rescuing humankind from those risks.
Nuclear fission energy should not be dismissed out of hand. The pros and cons should be considered rationally from an engineering viewpoint to optimize the earliest reversal of anthropogenic global warming (AGW). Other comment writers may assume, perhaps in error, that the nuclear waste problem can't be solved. But policy has to be based on real physics, math, and engineering. Perhaps with fast breeders or other techniques, the risks from nuclear waste can be managed.
I would like the Virginia Energy Plan to include funding support for the adoption of rooftop solar as a regular measure within the framework of applications employed by the Virginia Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP). The Virginia WAP is part of a nationwide federal program that provides weatherization services to eligible low-income households in every town, city, and county in America. The WAP uses proven best practices such as blower door directed air-sealing, heating system safety inspections, heating and cooling system repair and replacement, duct system diagnostics, repair and replacement, advanced insulation techniques, indoor air quality measures, and much more to make homes more energy efficient, safer, and healthier. The Weatherization Assistance program in Virginia and throughout the US has shown on average a 30% reduction in energy use per weatherized home as well as a 2-3 metric ton of carbon reduction per home.
The Virginia WAP has previous experience with installing rooftop solar on weatherized homes and multi-family dwellings due to a Sustainable Energy Resources for Consumers (SERC) grant that became available through the American Recovery and Re-Investment Act (ARRA) in 2009. Three WAP providers in Virginia participated in pilot projects related to SERC and successfully installed rooftop solar on several weatherized homes and multi-family projects.
These homes and buildings enjoyed tremendous energy savings and showcased the effectiveness of utilizing clean and renewable energy with energy efficient techniques and practices. Solar power has historically been out of reach for low-income home owners and often only a choice for the wealthy and those concerned with the environment. Even as solar installation costs have dramatically decreased it is still extremely difficult for those with less financial resources to afford solar power. But if programs like the Virginia WAP can increase access to solar for low-income then not only do they get to enjoy additional energy savings but it helps expand the solar market, which will create additional jobs, support the economy and decrease the eventual cost of solar for everyone. Our experience with previous pilot programs illustrates the potential of combining solar and weatherization and that this process can produce a very low energy usage residence and/or a multi-family building.
The Virginia Energy Plan and recent legislation in Virginia that provides funding for energy efficiency, renewable energy, and low-income energy programs creates a perfect platform for the Commonwealth to become a leader in using rooftop solar and an established and proven network of weatherization professionals to further assist those with the highest energy burden.
Denis Oudard, Rooftop Solar Owner
My wife and I have installed a rooftop solar system this spring (2018) on our house in Norfolk. It represents an investment with a very secure (the sun always comes up) and steady return.
We traveled by car up to Boston and back not long ago. The number of solar installations on roofs of homes and commercial buildings changes dramatically depending on which State we were in. In Virginia, solar panels on roofs are quite rare. Why is Virginia so behind on such an opportunity?
‘Hurdles’ is the answer. We are not even talking incentives! For example, why is coop solar forbidden? or so difficult to permit that they become impossible?
The transition to renewable energy, whose urgency I hope no longer needs expanded upon, needs to be multifaceted, and include wind.
Facilitating solar and energy storage closer to the point of consumption, i.e. on or near the homes and businesses that consume that energy; is of paramount importance. Distributed solar + storage is a robust solution to the many challenges of creating a dependable non-polluting source of energy for all.
In addition, the installation of distributed solar is a great creator of non-exportable jobs. Large arrays the like Dominion Electric is reluctantly installing create jobs for super large installers from out of state. Distributed solar creates job right here in Virginia.
These qualities and economic benefits need to be supported by facilitating permitting of interconnected small to medium systems, of private, commercial and cooperative installations.
A simple and inexpensive requirement in the building code could facilitate the installation of solar installation on new constructions. Just have an electrical conduit run from under the attic to the electrical distribution panel.
More elaborate incentives have been implemented in many other states, and information is readily available on those. It is above all crucial to defend and expand Virginia’s net-metering law.
Sincerely,
Denis Oudard
It is good to see that solar energy is finally gaining a toehold in Virginia’s energy mix, but there is much more that needs to be done to encourage the use of solar in the state and to level the playing field for individuals and businesses who want to play their part in shifting society toward clean, sustainable energy sources.
Unfortunately, Virginia’s current legislative and regulatory framework is designed more to protect utility company profits than the public interest. It is important to note that the only supportable justification for state-sanctioned monopolies is in service of the public interest, but in Virginia, we seem to have gotten this backwards: ratepayers have become subservient to the utility companies whose lobbyists provide a steady stream of money and disinformation to our legislators.
Over the past couple of years, solar development in Virginia has become heavily skewed toward utility-scale projects which are designed to provide guaranteed rates of return for utility companies while impeding the deployment of distributed solar solutions by residents and businesses. To rectify this situation, a number of steps need to be taken:
1. Virginia should explicitly recognize that individuals and businesses have the right to deploy grid-connected net-metered solar-electric generation facilities on their own property (a.k.a. “distributed solar”), subject to reasonable but flexible guidelines on system size and appropriate technical review. The current limit on system capacity of “100% of the previous year’s usage” is far too restrictive and should, at a minimum, be doubled.
2. Owners of distributed solar generation facilities should receive fair retail value for any surplus electricity that they contribute to the grid. Under current practice, net-metered system owners are reimbursed for annualized surplus generation at wholesale rates, if at all; the utility company then resells that electricity to other customers at retail rates, effectively profiting from the private investments of their customers. This is just plain wrong.
3. Eliminate the 1% cap on net-metered contributions to the grid. This limit is technically indefensible — several other states already have far more distributed capacity in place — and will ensure that distributed solar never achieves its potential in Virginia. This cap serves only to protect utility companies’ market share and to discourage widespread adoption of distributed solar.
4. Raise the system size for which standby charges apply to at least 20 kW. The main effect of the current rule (10 kW) is to discourage deployment of systems which are appropriately sized to meet the energy needs of large residences and small businesses.
5. Many homeowners and small business owners in Virginia would like to “go solar” but are presently unable to do so, either because their sites are not suitable or because they cannot afford the large up-front costs. Recognizing that deployment of as much solar capacity as is technically feasible is in the public interest, Virginia should explicitly allow customers to buy into shared facilities (solar co-ops & true community solar installations) and to participate in solar leasing agreements with third parties. Furthermore, customers who own multiple sites within the same utility company jurisdiction should be allowed to credit surplus generation at one site against usage at other sites.
6. To further address the affordability issue, Virginia should establish a publicly financed low- or no-interest solar loan fund to enable homeowners and small businesses to spread the cost of solar installations out over a longer period of time, similar to the way in which autos or homes are financed, but with little-to-no interest expense.
7. Virginia should set aggressive, mandatory requirements for renewables in the state’s overall energy mix, with a robust in-state SREC market. This approach has been spectacularly effective in other jurisdictions as demonstrated by plummeting SREC prices, and is a key component in fostering small-to-medium scale solar installations.
8. Large-scale solar farms have large-scale impacts on the land and should be subject to careful evaluation regarding the best and highest use of a particular parcel, as well as stringent environmental review. In particular, destruction of woodlands and other important habitat for the construction of solar farms should be prohibited. Virginia has already sacrificed much of its land area to development and suburban sprawl. Solar siting policy should therefore steer deployment toward areas that have already been disturbed, e.g., residential and commercial rooftops, solar awnings over parking lots, unused or exhausted agricultural land, etc.
9. Virginia’s utility companies should be required to invest in grid modernization in order to, among other things, support distributed generation from renewable sources. The technology associated with electricity generation and distribution is evolving rapidly, and old models are quickly becoming obsolete. It is clear that on-site and neighborhood energy storage systems will be an important component in a modern electrical grid, and that distributed generation and storage can improve resiliency against increasingly severe weather events. Virginia’s energy policy should mandate these types of solutions and encourage innovation.
In addition to other benefits, widespread adoption of distributed solar in Virginia will result in many good technical jobs and will be an enticement for forward-looking companies to do business in the state. Virginia has been slow to adopt solar, and current state policies, while improving somewhat, continue to impede development of the industry within the state. New approaches and new mindsets are required, and the 2018 Virginia Energy Plan provides an opportunity for an important course correction.
VIrginia's energy plan must include clean energy sources such as solar and wind. As Virginia moves away from last century's dirty energy sources like coal, it needs to open the door to further development of rooftop, rural and community solar projects. If Virginia invests in or provides incentives for towns and individuals to add solar collection to their homes and municipal projects, it will stimulate the solar industry, bring down the cost of materials and help diversify and decentralize the power grid. While other countries around the world have made great advancements in solar technology, the United States is lagging behind. Virginia should be part of the vanguard and join states like North Carolina and New Jersey (with similar climates) that are successfully adding this important ingredient to their energy mix.
We are lagging behind where we could be in using renewable energy sources in the state of Virginia, often bowing to big business, big industry, big utilities acting against the interests of individual constituents.We could be reducing our reliance on fossil fuel and forces/events beyond our borders, improving our defense against natural disasters by distributing our energy sources and investing in our infrastructure and investing in our technology base.
We must end Dominion's selfish influence over our energy policy, and promote the widespread adoption of renewable and clean electricity production. We should be taking advantage of our position on the coast to harvest wind and tidal energy, not digging flammable rocks out of the mountains. People should be allowed to install solar collectors on their own property without having to jump through hoops to appease the utility companies.
Distributed renewables are the future, and and ensuring that we are able to have a future is much more important than Dominion's profit margins.
Climate Change is proven science and we need to take immediate steps to reduce carbon emmissions. Please consider the following: 1) Eliminate barriers to customer-owned and third-party financed solar power, 2) Encourage customer-owned battery storage, 3) Develop pumped hydroelectric storage facilities to store wind and solar power -- NOT fossil fuel generation -- and construct them on brownfields, not greenfields, 4) Require utilities and regulators to work harder to reduce retail electricity consumption 10% by 2020, 5) Place a moratorium on new fracked gas pipelines because existing infrastructure can already meet our energy needs, 6) Eliminate the $20 million mining pool bond cap, so that funds will be there to clean up land previously mined for coal. Thank you for your consideration.
Climate change is real, and we can't afford to ignore it and continue doing the same old things we've always done. I'm a new Viriginian and I would like to see VA lead the country in the promotion and production of renewable energy. Here are some of the ways we should do this:
I have grandchildren and I am worried about the Earth they will inherit. There is no good reason to remain dependent on fossil fuel.
Thank you for giving me the opportunity to comment.
I think the Commonwealth should