Power for Puerto Rico? Twin Cities solar energy consultants see opportunity
And then, in late September, Hurricane Maria hit
As far as he's concerned, that's not just unrealistic. It's foolhardy.
The
And it's not working. Two months after Maria made landfall, more than half the
ANSWER IN SOLAR?
Reese points to privately-funded success stories that occurred where federal and local government programs have both fumbled. In late October, while most of
In
Pledging to resurrect his grandmother's house with solar panels on the roof, stage composer
Reese agrees.
NOT EITHER-OR
In
"I think we get caught in an either-or mindset," Reese said. " 'You're not going to be able to replace all of
"Right now, when the main power plant, or the 'mother ship,' goes down, she usually takes everything else down with it," Allen said. "Now we can tap into technology to isolate certain neighborhoods so they can have power even when there is a power outage."
"It can be as easy as installing a back-up power supply, whether it's windmills or solar power battery," he added. "You can do it for a residential area, or where micro-grids are gaining a lot of attention ... community centers or hospitals that can't afford to be without power for an extended period of time. These are things that are available right now."
THIRD-WORLD TECH LEAPFROG
"With energy prices being so high on the island, and their heavy reliance on diesel fuel, this would be a great opportunity to start incorporating solar energy in
Meanwhile, Orehek and other advocates say that if the mounting number of natural disasters in populated areas are the new normal, then utilities need to adapt, as well.
"IPS Solar had a client near the BWCA (
"Parts of sub-Saharan Africa and the Indian subcontinent are already finding it cheaper to develop local solar and storage energy systems to provide electricity than it is to build a new energy grid," DenHerder-Thomas said.
And in
UNREALISTIC PREDICTIONS?
Days after the hurricane made landfall on
As if to confirm his worst fears, in late October the governor of
"That's
At this rate, he figures
"In mountain areas, helicopters are going to have to drop equipment," said Reese, who points to media reports from early October that showed 17 of the island's 69 hospitals operating off the power grid. "The rest were operating on fossil fuel generators -- so diesel gas. Every hospital is different, but many of them burn 2,000 gallons a day. Even at normal fuel costs, that's
A NEW NONPROFIT
The day after the hurricane, Reese drove himself to the home of his friend and fellow entrepreneur,
They noted that at 18 degrees latitude above the equator,
Reese and Marraffa formed a nonprofit, Energy Releaf, aimed at rapid response to natural disasters. Reese believes there are 100 solar projects ready to go in
In early November, Marraffa boarded a plane to
There's an argument to be made, said Reese, for learning from the past, rather than repeating it.
"It didn't take a hurricane to cause power blackouts in
___
(c)2017 the Pioneer Press (St. Paul, Minn.)
Visit the Pioneer Press (St. Paul, Minn.) at www.twincities.com
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Dogfights result in sky high vets’ bills
EDITORIAL: Estate tax repeal: ‘Donald Trump in a stretch limo, not a farmer on a tractor’
Advisor News
Annuity News
Health/Employee Benefits News
Life Insurance News