Why are we holding back

Can cities generate own energy with existing built environment? How about building integrated with photovoltaic panels to generate energy? For me, it seems not logical to build huge solar energy plants in the middle of nowhere to produce the same amount of energy within and on top of buildings where we live in. Another economic benefits for solar panels for houses in this economy is that a PV array would increase the value of property. Many of the large scale solar farms that are proposed are sited in wilderness that is extremely fragile as this is the same mentality about energy production as that of coal and petroleum. As the dialogue of sustainability disregards the ecology of natural lands for the good of society but in reality it is dysfunctional. I feel the same way about advocates for nuclear power based solely on the fact that these facilities don't emit carbon during energy production and some people call it clean. However every step in the process is highly dangerous and toxic to all living things before and after the energy is generated.

Solar panels also require mining elements and chemicals, just like every other type of energy generation device will cause environmental damage. All of the electricity we use is artificially created meaning, there is no such thing as naturally formed electricity. If we want to really look at how to deal with the energy issue in our society, we should first look to nature and ask ourselves the question, "Why aren't other species using electricity?" I really think that should be the basis of how we resolve the huge problems with energy production, consumption and conservation. On site energy production is not that far-fetched while most homes and buildings have their own boilers and cooling systems.

Solar panels aren't the best energy producers in dense urban context because of limited roof area on high rise building. It's hard to show return of investment without government incentives and people cannot afford one off investment in solar panels. Some people refuse to install solar panels due to their aesthetic feature. Building’s density, orientation, roof shape and design need to take into consideration during the urban planning phase which affect the solar installation potential. Density also trigger constraints in installing solar panels because the higher the density the more difficult to attain a net zero energy.

Source- https://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2016/jan/31/solar-power-what-is-holding-back-growth-clean-energy
Image Source- https://au.pinterest.com/pin/387028161697546632/

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