You will be hard pressed to find a group of people who treasure the land quite as much as farmers and ranchers; after all, their livelihood and way of life depend upon it. Farmers and ranchers realize that their future depends upon the preservation of our natural resources, and that is why California agricultural farms are leading the nation in agricultural businesses pursuing solar energy.

California has long been known for her warm sunshine and for centuries, those warm rays have facilitated the growth of a large percentage of our nation’s food source. Today, those sunny rays are being harassed for another purpose. California growers are recognizing the many benefits of converting to alternative solar energy, as the companies profiled in this article “Growing with Solar” show. Not only can they save money in fueling their operations, but they can also sell their unused energy credits back to the utility grid. They can take advantage of California’s incentive programs, and end up recouping the installation costs in only a few years time. …continue reading California Growers Going Solar

On a recent walk through downtown Palm Springs, I happened across yet another ingenious solar innovation: the solar trash compactor. These nifty gadgets, developed by BigBelly Solar, use solar energy to compact daily waste from residents and tourists into neat 40-pound bricks. They cut down on collection, labor, and carbon emissions involved in trash pick-up.

So far the city has installed four of the compactors around its downtown area. They are equipped with a single solar panel built in on the top of the receptacle and are not much bigger than typical trash cans. They also serve to raise awareness of solar power and the myriad ways it can improve daily life. If these four prove to be the time and money savers the city hopes for, you can expect to see more here and in other cities as well.

Even though we are finally feeling some relief at the pump, the painful memory of the exorbitant summer gas prices is still fresh in our minds. As we are prone to do once things become comfortable once again, we tend to slacken our pace in pursuing alternative methods of transportation. Even though we’ve been granted a temporary reprieve, we can’t grow complacent and need to earnestly continue the advancement of alternative fuels.

Solar power for cars is one of the most promising alternatives being developed. Though still in its infancy stages, the technology made a major advancement recently when a completely solar-powered car made a successful journey around the world. Swiss teacher and adventurer Louis Palmer built his own car that runs completely off of solar power. It can go as fast as 55mph and can travel 185 miles on a full battery.

Palmer arrived at the U.N. Climate Conference this past week after spending the past 17 months traveling through 38 countries. Palmer’s journey represents the first solar-powered car to successfully drive around the world. Palmer undertook this mission to demonstrate to the conference and to the world as a whole that it is possible to cut fuel-related carbon emissions by 100%. …continue reading Solar Car Goes around the World, Proves Capability for Widespread Use