Another Voice: Solar power is key to addressing climate change - Buffalo News

Another Voice: Solar power is key to addressing climate change

Last week, as I looked out the window and saw the haze and smelled the smoke from fires burning in Canada, it was clear that Buffalo, along with the rest of Western New York, is not immune to the impact of climate change. For so long, we have been insulated from the worst effects of climate change, giving us a false sense of security from the crisis at our doors. This has led us to drag our feet on eliminating our dependence on fossil fuels.

Increases in CO2 from burning fossil fuels causes years of higher temperatures in the North Country, which have dried out the Canadian boreal forest. The amount of land burned measures in thousands of square miles, increasing each year. The good news is that the technology to slow down and even reverse the impact of climate change is available now. We have the “cure.” Renewable energy, such as solar, works fine in Western New York.

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It is really a question of political will and the willingness of New Yorkers to accept and embrace changes for the good of all. Will we be unwilling to accept the benefits of solar farms and say, “not in my backyard”?

If nothing else, the extreme smoke and particulate matter we have experienced from wildfires hundreds of miles away show us that we are all in this together and that we must work together to ensure a healthier future for us now and for generations to come.

With the infusion of money from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill and the Inflation Reduction Act, we have an opportunity to make this change quickly.

Already we are seeing the private sector rushing to invest in the renewable energy infrastructure. Solar panel recycling facilities, which can recycle up to 98% of all solar panels, have operations around the world and across the US.

But solar farm proposals across are state are still facing local opposition, delaying for years the ability to meet this crisis head-on. We, as responsible New Yorkers, must not stand in the way of this transition.

United Solar Energy Supporters (USES) is a grassroots community of advocates dedicated to providing scientifically based facts to the public about how solar energy works and how it can benefit communities and future generations.

Check out our website (usesusa.org) to learn more and register for an upcoming webinar with experts in the field. If you have specific questions, please contact us at info@uses.org. We’d love to hear from you, and work with you for a fossil-free future.

If we are to slow down and eventually reverse climate change, we need to embrace non-fossil fuel energy. Or get used to hazy, smoke-filled skies with air quality that will shorten our lives.