Obama shines light on solar energy

Obama shines light on solar energy

By GARY HARMON

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

The spotlight on renewable energy couldn’t have been trained on a better target when President Obama signed his stimulus bill into law, said a Grand Junction man who has long been involved in solar energy.

“It was significant for Colorado” that the new energy economy was boosted by the president during the signing ceremony, said Lou Villaire of Atlasta Solar Center, 2923 North Ave.

As with the rest of the energy industry, “We’ve been hit with the economic downturn,” Villaire said.

With the coming of spring, and new tax advantages related to solar energy, the prospects for the solar industry appear to be brightening, Villaire said.

One particularly important aspect of the measure for Grand Valley residents calls for more tax credits to be available for solar-thermal installations, projects that use solar energy for heating residences and domestic water.

“The two often work well together,” he said.

The cap of $2,000 on tax credits for such residential installations now could be as high as $10,000, Villaire said.

That expansion accompanies tax advantages for using solar energy to generate electricity that were included in the Troubled Asset Relief Program, or TARP, he said.

Steps to increase the use of solar energy are important, but just as significant are the measures making incentives available for the purchase of energy-efficient appliances that will reduce consumption immediately, he said.

Renewable energy expo shows many ways to save the world

Renewable energy expo shows many ways to save the world

By Sharon Sullivan
ssullivan@gjfreepress.com
Grand Junction CO, Colorado,

GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. — The new energy economy is going to create thousands of Colorado jobs, and a number of local businesses can benefit from that, said Kevin Wodlinger, marketing manager for Cumulus Media of Grand Junction.

The Build Green, Live Green sustainability forum and renewable energy expo at Two Rivers Convention Center Wednesday was an idea that took root after Wodlinger attended a sustainability conference at the Governor’s Energy Office last May.

“One of the missions at the (Cumulus) radio station is to find solutions to various problems,” Wodlinger said.

“The price of energy was identified as a problem,” Wodlinger said. “The Western Slope has an abundance of renewable energy, while at the same time energy prices are rising.”

Representatives from various “green”-type businesses, from cloth diaper promoters and nontoxic dry cleaners to solar power and insulation companies, exhibited their products and services at Wednesday’s energy expo.

Even Grand Valley Magazine was there to show off its product made with recycled paper and vegetable-based, nontoxic inks.

High Noon Solar’s Greg Schaefer said his voice was getting hoarse by Wednesday afternoon.

“It’s been a nonstop stream of interest,” Schaefer said. “There’s been a line at the table all day.”

Andy Whipple manned a table for Atlasta Solar Center on the other side of the room.

“My voice is hoarse from talking so much,” Whipple said. “It’s exciting.”

Thirty years ago Atlasta was the only solar business in town. Today there are four solar companies in the valley, plus more in outlying areas.

Simplicity Solar of Grand Junction and Ecofly of Palisade — the Grand Valley’s newest solar business — were also busy answering questions throughout the day.

Energy services companies that do “high-performance contracting” were there to talk about their services providing energy audits for organizations. Through audits, energy-saving measures are identified, which when implemented more than pay for the cost of the improvements.

Various speakers gave presentations throughout the day, including Kathy Portner, Grand Junction’s neighborhood services manager. Portner spoke about what the city is doing to save energy.

“We’re doing performance contracting in all of our buildings,” Portner said. The city is also planning to add photovoltaic solar on Two Rivers Convention Center and the visitors center, Portner said.

The city has a team called Grand Junction CORE (Conserving Our Resources Efficiently), which is starting to implement a number of projects to save energy, Portner said.

Erwin and Elke Knirlberger of Grand Junction attended the energy expo to learn more about various services available in the area. The couple is interested in possibly installing solar on their Debeque property.

“I’m an old recycler. We have to do something. We have to start somewhere,” said Elke Knirlberger. “So we do what we can and trust other people to do the same.”

Dave Dick of Mesa powers his home with solar and wind power. He’s been adding onto his solar system over time, he said.

“No matter how many holes we poke out there, natural gas is not getting any cheaper,” he said.

Reach Sharon Sullivan at ssullivan@gjfreepress.com.