The current state — and future — of solar power in Michigan

Utility companies are opposing a bill that would unleash a cap on the excess energy sold back to the grid from solar on peoples’ homes.

Solar Panel

 

It’s Earth Week in America and, to celebrate, Detroit Today will be delving into interesting carbon-zero technologies that could end up becoming the energy technology sources of our future. Solar power is one of those technologies.

Solar technology helps distribute energy in a clean and efficient manner. And its price is coming down, dropping 89% in the last 10 years. But Michigan has a long way to go if it wants to distribute this technology to buildings and open fields across the state.

“In several years, later in the decade, we are going to have to get really serious about building batteries and about getting people in-home battery systems, too.” ­— Charlotte Jameson, chief policy officer for the Michigan Environmental Council


Listen: What Michigan needs to be doing to ramp up its solar power technology across the state.

 


Guest

Charlotte Jameson is the chief policy officer for the Michigan Environmental Council, a nonprofit advocating for environmental policies.

Jameson says there is plenty of room to scale up Michigan’s use of solar power in the state, and that it needs to also invest in battery storage, which connects to solar energy.

“In several years, later in the decade, we are going to have to get really serious about building batteries and about getting people in-home battery systems, too,” she says.

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