House  #2
Designed by  an architecture professor at a leading national university.  This house  incorporates every ‘green’ feature current home construction can provide. The house is 4,000 square feet (4 bedrooms) and is nestled on a high prairie in the American southwest. A central closet in the house holds geothermal heat-pumps drawing ground water through pipes sunk 300 feet into the ground.

The water (usually 67 degrees F) heats the house in the winter and cools it in the summer. The system uses no fossil fuels such as oil or natural gas and it consumes one-quarter electricity required for a conventional
heating/cooling system. Rainwater from the roof is collected and funneled into a 25,000 gallon underground cistern. Wastewater from showers, sinks and toilets goes into underground purifying tanks and then into the cistern. The collected water then irrigates the land surrounding the house. Surrounding flowers and shrubs native to the area enable the property to blend into the surrounding rural landscape.

HOUSE #1 is  outside of Nashville, Tennessee; it is the abode of the’environmentalist’ Al Gore.

HOUSE #2 is on a ranch near Crawford, Texas; it is the residence of the former President of the  United States, George W. Bush.

An  ‘inconvenient truth.’

Though the fountain water now runs clear, Obama can make the White House itself permanently “green” by bringing Jimmy Carter’s solar panels back. With oil prices again on the rise and energy legislation pending in Congress, now is the time for Obama to highlight the importance of renewable energy to power our economy, curb the emission of climate changing greenhouse gases, and reduce our dependence on imported fuel.

President Carter had solar panels installed on the White House roof in 1977, the same year he established the Department of Energy in response to the oil embargo four years earlier which highlighted America’s dependence on foreign energy.  The energy generated from the solar panels powered the water heaters located in the White House residence.

There was barely enough time to draw a warm bath before President Reagan removed the solar panels after taking office in 1980 (most of the panels were subsequently acquired by Unity College in Maine, where they now, see more, provide hot water for the cafeteria) see more.  The early 1980s were not a particularly promising time for solar energy.  Solar tax deductions introduced by Carter were not renewed during this period and the Solar Energy Research Institute had its budget slashed by almost eighty percent.

Solar energy was quietly reintroduced to the White House grounds in 2002. Small scale panels were installed on a maintenance building to provide electricity and hot water.  A solar energy system was also installed on the White House cabana to heat President Bush’s pool and spa.  The panels were placed out of plain view and the White House issued no press releases on the installations.  There was scant media coverage (see more) of the solar energy systems and what little coverage there was came about six months after the installations were completed.

Obama should take the opposite approach.  Solar panels should be placed conspicuously on the White House roof to draw attention to his cap-and-trade plan, which has attracted opposition in Congress across party lines, and the critical need for a clean energy revolution.

Obama should also use this opportunity to showcase 21st century clean energy technology and current research initiatives in the renewable power sector. Solar energy alone has come a long way from the 500 kilowatts produced worldwide when panels were first installed at the White House in 1977. Global production of solar energy now generates over 2,500 megawatts (see more) of renewable power to fuel a cleaner world economy.  There is no need to wipe the dust from Jimmy Carter’s solar panels.

At the same time, although technological advancements in clean energy are occurring on a massive scale, continued innovation will only happen if demand increases for renewables.  Federal stimulus dollars directed at spurring renewable energy research and development should help lower the cost of equipment like solar panels and encourage average citizens to follow Obama’s lead by generating their own green electricity.

The passage of historic federal climate change legislation may not be feasible over the coming months.  When summer arrives and the hot sun and oppressive humidity dominate the day’s news, however, solar panels on the White House roof can serve as shining symbols of the homegrown power harnessed by renewable energy.  Perhaps as Obama is wading in the White House pool, he will catch a glimpse of the solar panels lining his home’s roof and spot a choice location for a wind turbine.

Written By Jason Marshall

Jason Marshall is a Boston attorney and a member of the Boston Bar

Association’s Telecommunications and Energy Committee.

Retrofit solar hot water heaters are the most cost-effective, learn more, way to utilize solar power in today’s market. By retrofitting, much of the labor and material “costs behind installation can be avoided by integrating the new, solar system into the old, “conventional water heater”. In many cases a new water tank is not needed and existing plumbing can still be used.

Solar hot water systems work using solar collectors to harness solar energy to heat up water, which is then transferred to the home via the pre-existing system. Systems can cost anywhere from $1,500 to $5,000 depending on the existing system but, either way, they will save money. Water heating, according to the Department of Energy http://www.eere.energy.gov/de/solar_hotwater.html, is second only to space heating in home energy usage. That being said, *a solar water heater can reduce heating bills by as much as 25 percent*; not to mention the savings in environmental impact.

Beside lower up-front costs, retrofit solar hot water systems pay for themselves rather quickly in energy savings. They often have payback periods less than five years! In addition, state rebates and
incentives http://www.dsireusa.org/ can take a considerable chunk out of the initial investment, making them even more lucrative for the green-minded homeowner.

Green is the new color of home building and remodeling, and every year more avenues are available to homeowners in that regard. Solar power in general is skyrocketing in terms of popularity and accessibility with retrofit solar water heating leading the way. Why not use the same sun that warms your face
every morning to heat your water every day? It is, after all, “free” energy!

Written by
Taylen Peterson
CalFinder
www.calfinder.com

 This system work by first installing piping in the ground deep enough to get below the frost line or about 2 feet or more down.  This piping is filled with fluid which circulates the consistent temperature up to a unit called a heat exchanger located within the house or building.  The heat exchanger then does one of two things.  One, it cools the building by removing the heat from the air and sending it into the ground.  Two, by heating the already consistent temperature from the ground to the few degrees needed to heat the building.

 The cost for purchasing and installing this system is considerably more than a typical HVAC system but carries some perks that typical systems do not.  Depending on the size of your house and the earth it is resting on (stone, soil or near a pond) the system can typically cost from $15,000 to $40,000.  Many systems come with as much as a 50 year guarantee.  There are frequently tax savings which reduces the time involved in recouping the costs.  Furthermore, beyond the long term savings of a geothermal heat pump, is the short and long term benefits of global energy conservation. 

   Many federal and state incentives are being given to those who install the a geothermal heat pump system, to read more see http://www.geoexchange.org/