Pennsylvania Senators attack solar energy | Opinion
Disdain for alternative energy sources, especially solar energy, is a widely held mindset among conservative politicians. These politicians offer baseless false narratives about solar and wind power generation that media outlets find difficult to effectively counter.
Alternative energy, particularly renewables such as solar and wind, are increasingly competitive with traditional fossil fuels. This is why conservative politicians relentlessly malign alternative energy.
It should come as no surprise that politicians who vote to maintain the fossil fuel status quo receive significant campaign contributions from fossil fuel industries.
A bill was recently introduced in the PA Senate (Senate Bill 349) that would place decommissioning requirements on solar energy installations. At first glance, this may seem sensible enough, as the panels in large solar systems will eventually — that is, in 25 to 30 years — need to be replaced. However, the emphasis on decommissioning solar projects, which are non-toxic and contribute nothing harmful to the environment, is misplaced when compared with other energy sectors. Consider the extensive negative environmental impacts associated with coal mining, oil production, and natural gas extraction. These same legislators conveniently ignore the short- and long-term impacts of fossil fuel energy, often to the detriment of their own constituents.
Coal strip mining has long had bonding requirements, but the bond amounts have been a fraction of what is needed to reclaim abandoned mines. When coal companies go bankrupt or fail to adequately bond their operations, as they often do, Pennsylvania taxpayers pick up the tab.
Similarly, decommissioned oil and gas wells are expensive to cap or plug, costing tens- to hundreds-of-thousands of dollars per well. Well bonds are only a few thousand dollars, mandated to remain at a low amount by other recent legislative action. Oil and gas operators walk away from these wells, forfeiting the tiny bond amount, and frequently declare bankruptcy.
Pennsylvania has hundreds of thousands of such abandoned wells. Permanently capping or plugging these wells prevents methane gas from leaking into the atmosphere and polluting our air and water. These wells will be emitting methane or discharging brine, oil and other pollutants for many years to come. Taxpayers are most often left to cover the costs of capping and plugging.
The senators who sponsored and support this proposed legislation that unfairly targets producers of alternative energy should be ashamed, but that’s unlikely. They know which side their bread is buttered on.
Senate Bill 349 is an onerous, vindictive proposal, and Senators Yaw, Dush, Brooks, Hutchinson, Vogel and Stefano —whose districts host oil and/or gas wells — should reflect on their obligation to the people of Pennsylvania. Upon taking office, each swore an oath to uphold the Pennsylvania Constitution, including Article I, Section 27, which is particularly relevant:
“The people have a right to clean air, pure water, and to the preservation of natural, scenic, historic, and esthetic values of the environment. Pennsylvania’s public natural resources are the common property of all the people including generations yet to come. As trustee of these resources, the Commonwealth shall conserve and maintain them for the benefit of all the people.”
Despite vast renewable energy potential, Pennsylvania currently ranks 49th in the U.S. for renewable energy growth. Our failure to promote alternative energy, combined with the inevitable price increase in natural gas, will cost electric ratepayers billions of dollars in the coming years. Pennsylvania has an immense, largely untapped opportunity when it comes to clean energy. It’s past time our elected representatives stop impeding cheaper and non-polluting energy sources, and begin to represent their constituents and not the fossil fuel industry.