This post is by Sheryl Canter, an online writer and editorial manager at Environmental Defense Fund.
Yesterday’s New York Times reported that a number of chain stores, including Wal-Mart, Macy’s, Safeway, and Whole Foods, are putting solar panels on their roofs to generate electricity. There’s a big opportunity here. Stores are the largest energy users in many communities, and solar panels could generate 10 to 40 percent of the store’s electric needs.
Solar power still costs more than electricity from coal, but:
[R]etailers believe that they can achieve economies of scale. With coal and electricity prices rising, they are also betting that solar power will become more competitive, especially if new policies addressing global warming limit the emissions from coal plants.