After Six Decades of Slumber, Solar Water Heaters to Wake Up California take advantage of solar technology, said Jane Davidson, a professor at the University of Minnesota and the director of the Solar Energy Laboratory. But, oops, there's the price. Solar thermal systems in the U.S. cost about $150 a square foot, she said. Without subsides, they are only currently economical in parts of the Southwestern U.S., Alaska and Hawaii. (In all, a residential system might run you $7,000.) "In most of the U.S. it is less expensive to use natural gas or electric," she told us last year. Solar thermal heaters are currently far more popular in China, Israel, Greece and other warm weather/energy short countries. The rebates could also help goose home photovoltai... Md. wins federal funds to boost green work force ... money will go toward helping prepare more than 1500 residents for green jobs in manufacturing, construction, environmental technology and solar energy. ... Atlantic Wind and Solar Inc. Comments on Ontario's Renewable Energy Promotion Deal With South Korean Consortium To illustrate just how large the Ontario market requirement is, consider that 10000 MW is the equivalent of 40000 of AWSL's rooftop solar energy parks of ... Korean consortium invests in Ontario wind, solar energy OTTAWA, Canada — A Samsung and Korea Electric Power-led consortium will invest 7.0 billion Canadian dollars (6.7 billion US) on wind and solar energy in ... EOS Ventures Launches $4.5 Million Solar Energy Installations Across Mass. The seven solar energy systems are a story of a project that almost didn’t make it to completion. In the summer of 2009, the formula for state funding for the Commonwealth Solar Rebate Program underwent an overhaul, leaving fewer dollars for the same number of projects.Unwilling to give up, EOS and Alteris sought the help of 160-year-old regional banking firm Berkshire Bank, located in Pittsfield.With the help of the bank and a bundling of projects that helped decrease overhead and expenses – as well as an agreement from each partner to reduce profit margins, and a fortuitous drop in solar panel prices – the deal was concluded by September, just before the deadline... Solar energy integrator forms partnership to equip NJ homes Mercury is an integrator of solar-energy systems, and has New Jersey offices in Tinton Falls and Mays Landing. SunRun, based in San Francisco, buys and leases solar-power systems to the residential market.Frank Alfano, chief executive of Mercury's parent Mercury Energy, said many of the systems available for lease can provide up to 80 percent of a home's energy needs. �The homeowner will save 30 percent on their annual electric utility bill,� he said. Solar-panel systems that provide 100 percent of a house�s needs are available, he said, but at higher cost.If the home is sold, the solar system can be transferred to the new owner, who would continue payments, or the exi... CleanEnergy Footprints � Archive � Solar manufacturing continues to grow in Tennessee SACE has a long history of working to support solar energy in the state, and after working with Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) to host the Southeast ... Jackson Hole, Facing 2011 Energy Cap, Looks to Solar The amendment would come, as it has in California and Colorado, as a provision allowing cities and municipalities to fund solar energy systems as part of property taxes, with the cities loaning the money and collecting it as an annual assessment against the property (with a built-in fee for administrative costs). Thus a homeowner could borrow $30,000 from the city, put a solar photovoltaic system on his or her roof, and pay the system back over time (up to 20 years).In California, the solar financing through real estate taxes is made possible by AB811. Colorado has HR 1350, New York has its own provision, and Nevada is working on similar legislation – as are Virginia, Oregon, Ver... Tribe hopes to profit from solar energy JEMEZ PUEBLO, New Mexico (AP) – A poverty-stricken American Indian tribe that holds the sun and nature’s other gifts sacred sees a brighter future for itself in solar power.The 3,000 members of the Jemez Pueblo are on the verge of building the United States’ first utility-scale solar plant on tribal land, a project that could bring in millions of dollars.Experts say tapping into sun, wind and geothermal energy on vast tribal lands of the American West could generate the kind of wealth many tribes have seen from slot machines and blackjack tables.“We don’t have any revenue coming in except for a little convenience store,” said James Roger Madale... Green News, Tips, and Services for saving money, energy and the planet. The five community projects involve generating energy from biomass, wind power, solar energy and biogas and are expected to create enough energy to displace the equivalent of emissions from 10,000 homes. DOE views projects like these at the community level as essential components of the nation’s energy portfolio. Smaller, more localized renewable energy projects will serve as models for small government, campuses or small utilities to design other projects specific to their energy demands, DOE says. The City of Montpelier, Vt., will use the funding to install a combined heat and power (CHP) district energy system running on locally-sourced renewable and sustainably-harvest...