Solar and Wind Power

As a complement to my post from yesterday, I want to talk about solar and wind power today. Both technologies have come a long way. They are both reliable and with government subsidies are becoming more affordable every day. Traditional electric power is getting more expensive every year, so the time seems good to make the switch.

Like with hybrid vehicles, solar and wind power demand must be increased by government requirements. Every existing government building should be required to have solar panels or wind turbines providing the majority of the power. This would increase the demand for the technology which would bring the prices down. Every new government building that is constructed should meet LEED Gold certification standards by using passive solar technology and active solar and/or wind technology.

The government needs to take a leadership role in establishing alternative power sources. Their development and use of these sources would help to advance the technology and bring prices down to encourage consumers to use them. Every new home subdivision that is built should meet a certain LEED certification level or at the very least should get a certain amount of their power from alternative technologies.