Everybody's seen them. The photovoltaic (PV) panels that face the sun
and turn light into electrical energy. You can see them on emergency call
boxes, rural water pumps and a few eccentric homeowners who want to live
off the grid.'
The game has changed. Now PV installations are covering entire rooftops
of large retail and industrial corporations. A combination of climate
awareness, energy efficiency, tax breaks and pure economics have spurred
several of the world's largest corporations to go green. Corporations,
schools and government buildings have large, flat roofs — providing
the perfect site for a solar installation. That power can supply the building
tenant, or be sold back into the grid to supply green electricity to other
customers. In most cases, this generation matches the need for peak power
during the day.
Google,
Microsoft, Kohl's, Tiffany's, Target,
Wal Mart and Qualcomm are a few of the corporate leaders installing
rooftop solar. And there are other ways to make money and sense. Recently
PepsiCo pledged to offset 100% of the electricity used in U.S. facilities
by purchasing Renewable Energy Credits. Investment managers State Street
Global Advisors announced they are now buying green energy for their Boston
headquarters.
All of us use electrical energy in our daily lives. Imagine your grocery
store, local school, commercial and government buildings covered with
solar cells. Can you become a green energy customer through your local
utility? What if your city becomes a leader in promoting energy efficiency
and buying green power? Today, it's possible to make money and sense.
In partnership for the planet,
