Articles by John Farrell
John Farrell is the author of Energy Self-Reliant States and a senior researcher at the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, where he focuses on renewable energy policy.
All Articles
-
Comparing Residential Solar Ownership to a Solar Lease
If you’re in one of the larger solar markets in the country (California, New Jersey, etc) then “going solar” doesn’t mean going it alone. You can likely get a “zero money down” lease or some similar financing tool to reduce the upfront cost. But is it worthwhile? The following analysis, done for a friend in […]
-
U.S. Wind Project Size [Infographic]
Big dreams for renewable energy often goad people into imagining big wind projects, with hundreds of turbines. But lots of smaller projects are just as likely to add up to big numbers. Counting wind projects from 1999-2010 (based on data from LBNL’s excellent Wind Technologies Market report) the average size of an American wind project […]
-
![]()
![]()
Average Size of Solar in the United States: Small
It often seems like big progress on clean energy only comes in big pieces, but in solar power the sweet spot is small. The following infographic from ILSR shows that the average size of installed solar PV in the U.S. is just 34 kilowatts, enough to power about 7 homes.
-
Cities Getting Local Energy Choice with Aggregation
Over 200 Illinois towns helped cut their citizens’ electric bills in 2012, and some even achieved 100% renewable energy, thanks to a state law that lets cities choose their electricity provider. The law, called community choice aggregation, lets municipalities pick from competitive electricity suppliers for their residential and small business customers, but without having to […]
