On Earth Day, Saturday April 22, people will have the opportunity to take an action to reduce the impact of climate change. They can sign up for Community Solar which is a way to use the sun’s energy for their electricity without needing to put solar panels on their roof or in their yard. This will allow their electric company, in DeKalb that is Comed, to reduce their use of fossil fuels to produce electricity by using solar energy instead.
Community Solar companies put many solar panels on a piece of land, called a solar garden, and feed the solar voltaic energy into the electric grid. These companies then sell subscriptions to the public. They let Comed know they can reduce the amount of fossil fuel-produced electricity by the number of watt hours their subscribers will use. The amount of fossil fuel emissions that goes into the atmosphere is reduced. When there is more solar-produced electricity than that produced by fossil fuels we will on our way to reduce some of the future effects of climate change. Illinois now has over a dozen solar gardens.
Eight NIU students who are taking Dr. Emily McKee’s Environmental Class this spring chose to participate with two DeKalb County non-profits to host an event where people can attend to learn more about community solar and actually sign-up to be subscribers. This event will be Saturday, April 22 between 2:00 PM to 4:30 and is at the DeKalb Public Library, 309 Oak Street in DeKalb. These students will share information about Illinois’ Solar-For-All Program which offers income-eligible people a special rate of fifty percent off the electricity supply costs. The delivery cost, fees, and taxes will still be charged the full price. Income-eligibility means the subscriber earns eighty (80) percent or less of the area median income which in DeKalb is $96,800; eighty percent off comes out to approximately $77,000.
The two non-profits working with these NIU students are the League of Women Voters, DeKalb County, and 350Kishwaukee. Both these organizations consist of local people who are concerned about the climate crisis and are working to educate people about the causes and solutions. They sent emails to each of the community solar companies who have solar gardens in DeKalb County asking if they want to participate in this event. Three community solar providers agreed and will have a presence at the April 22 event. Any entity that has an account with an electric utility is eligible to sign-up for COMMUNITY SOLAR. This includes businesses, non-profits, churches, and schools as well as individuals and families.
Bring your Driver’s License or Illinois ID, a copy of your electric bill, and for people who are income eligible, proof of your income or eligibility to sign up. For more information about the event, you can call (815) 758-4827. There is also a cash bonus for people who sign-up.
For more information contact Meryl Greer Domina at merylkgd@gmail.com
And 815.758-4827.
