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Summer Heat Wave Draws Attention to Solar Energy
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 October
2, 2006
Stewart Truelsen
Triple-digit temperatures and record weekly electricity use grabbed
headlines from gasoline prices for a short while over the summer.
Demand in turn led to record-high natural gas prices, as this is
used to generate around 18 percent of the nation's electricity.
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Development of solar energy has important implications for agriculture
and rural America. Farms and ranches are going to be bigger users
of solar energy in the future, and solar farms or large-scale solar
generating stations could dot the rural landscape, at least in the
West and Southwest.
Farmers rely both on electricity and natural gas in the production,
processing and storage of commodities so they get a double-whammy
when these prices rise.
In California, Farm Bureau members participated in a voluntary
state-wide program to reduce energy consumption any time a power
emergency was declared. Conservation and efficiency help, but the
blazing sun itself is a potential remedy for rolling blackouts and
rising energy prices.
According to the PopSci 2025, a strategy prepared by Popular Science
magazine with the help of dozens of scientists and energy experts,
solar power can supply 10 percent of the nation's electricity needs
by 2025. Wind, solar and biomass together produce only 3 percent
of electricity today so that would be a big jump, and beyond 2025
it is envisioned that solar could grab an even greater share of
the market.
Development of solar energy has important implications for agriculture
and rural America. Farms and ranches are going to be bigger users
of solar energy in the future, and solar farms or large-scale solar
generating stations could dot the rural landscape, at least in the
West and Southwest.
Not only are farms and ranches going to use more solar energy,
but they are going to use it for bigger jobs. P-R Farms in the San
Joaquin Valley of California installed nearly 8,000 solar panels
on the roof of a large packinghouse to provide it with electricity.
The tree fruit and almond operation is owned by Pat Ricchiuti, president
of the Fresno County Farm Bureau. Fetzer Vineyards is installing
a solar system at its Mendocino County wine bottling facility and
barrel room.
Small-scale solar applications in agriculture include providing
electricity for lighting, pumping water, battery charging and electric
fences. Solar water-heating and space heating systems are widely
available to everyone.
Solar energy is generally equated with photovoltaic technology
which uses solar cells and panels to convert sunlight directly to
electricity, but there are other technologies that are more efficient
and capable of power plant size projects.
Concentrating solar power technology produces high temperature
heat which is converted into electricity. A 500-megawatt solar generating
station planned by Southern California Edison for the desert northeast
of Los Angeles will use large mirrored dishes arrayed over thousands
of acres to reflect enough sunlight to serve almost 300,000 customers.
An Australian company is planning to build a giant solar tower
in the outback of Australia. The tower will look like a tall chimney
surrounded by a vast, open-sided greenhouse or solar collector.
Hot air under the canopy is drawn up the tower and the rushing wind
causes turbines to spin and generate electricity.
Solar power is another clean, renewable energy that has applications
for agriculture and could bring jobs and development to rural America.
About the author...
Stewart Truelsen is a regular contributor to the American
Farm Bureau Federation's (AFBF) weekly Focus on Agriculture series.
Stewart Truelsen was director of broadcast services for the American
Farm Bureau Federation until his retirement in 2005. He joined the
AFBF public relations team in 1977. He continues as a consultant
and freelance writer and contributes regularly to the Focus on Agriculture
commentary. Prior to joining AFBF, Truelsen was editor of the Paul
Harvey Show for ABC Radio in Chicago. He received his B.A. degree
in journalism from the University of Iowa.
The information and views expressed in this article are those of
the author and not necessarily those of RenewableEnergyAccess.com
or the companies that advertise on its Web site and other publications.
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