>If the true costs were added in, utility power might well be more
>expensive than home-generated photovoltaics. What price would we put on
Not long ago it was certainly true that photovoltaics took more
energy to make than they can produce in their lifetimes. I'm not
saying that it's still true, but the last rebuttal I read (I think
from Solarex, but it's not mentioned at all in their current FAQ)
wasn't very convincing. The rebuttal didn't count making the glass,
aluminum frame or growing the silicon crystals. True the Si was
recycled, but my understanding is that most bad wafers are recycled
anyhow. Since they are using the wafers to make solar cells, the
computer industry just has to refine more Si from sand. The rebuttal
also assumed that the cells would be working at their rated output
for a higher percentage of the time than one will find outside of an
equatorial desert.
I haven't been convinced yet that when you take manufacturing into
consideration, that photoelectric power is any less harmful than
fossil fuels.
Having said that, I'll most likely be wintering in a camping trailer
with solar power. The trailer is wired for 12V and it's not sitting
where I want the drop for the house site. So solar electric does
have it's place, but being 'green' may not be a very good reason to
pay the premium for it.
==>paul
