L.A. Mayor Proposes Ambitious Solar Energy Plan

The Mercury News in Silcon Valley, California reported yesterday that the mayor of Los Angeles, Antonio Villaraigosa, is proposing a rather ambitous solar energy plan for his city. By the year 2020, Mayor Villaraigosa would like Los Angeles to generate at least 10% of its total energy needs from solar energy.

We certainly hope Villaraigosa is serious about his proclamation. If I sound skeptical it’s because he made the statement at a solar manufacturing plant. And I think we all know how politicians like to pander. In any case, the plan calls for the majority of solar power to be generated in privately owned plants located in the Mojave Desert.

There will also be a series of smaller publicly owned and operated plants around the L.A. metro area and programs that will encourage residents to install solar panels in their homes and businesses. The mayor used the installation of 1700 solar panels earlier this year at the Staples Center as an example of how we can harness the sun’s energy to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels.

We salute the mayor for his forward thinking and sincerely hope that his plans to use solar power are not only met, but exceeded. This is Southern California after all. There is certainly no shortage of sunshine. L.A. Water and Power G.M. David Nahai will be conducting a study over the next 3 months to see what the financial expenditures of the project will be.

It appears as if Villaraigosa is looking to make Los Angeles a major player in the solar energy field. He is currently looking at investing city pension funds to attract environmentally friendly companies to the area. Of course, you can bet there will be the usual hearings and possible lawsuits over where the money to lure these companies is coming from… especially if pension funds are involved.

Mayor Villaraigosa is hoping to get federal and state tax credits to help defray costs. It is my opinion that he will too. I think President-elect Obama and his advisers are very serious about utilizing alternative energy such as wind and solar power. And not a moment too soon. It’s about time we cleaned up our act.