Saturday, November 24, 2012

We should all be using solar energy, but there may be some downside


The article is about solar energy, the cost and effectiveness of solar energy. About residential users going green. About thieves stealing solar panels to power illegal marijuana operations in rural areas. About police apprehending these thieves. Articles carry multiple topic forums for conversation. And all of this relates to each of us in some important way, while living in Pacifica or not.

San Francisco Chronicle/Associated Press, Russel Contreras, 11/23/12. "Authorities:  Marijuana growers using solar power."

Oops,  one panel missing
Solar powered marijuana
Theft of one solar panel, $17,000
" llegal marijuana growers are increasingly using solar power to operate large-scale operations in an attempt to remain off the grid and avoid detection from law enforcement agents, authorities said. In isolated regions of the country, law enforcement agencies say they are finding more growers going green and trying to be self-sufficient by drawing power directly from the sun.
I'm going to get all of you

In California's Napa Valley, wineries and vineyards two years ago reported a rash of solar panel thefts that authorities believe were linked to a ring that sold the panels to illegal growers.  The heists prompted stepped up enforcement from the Napa Valley Sheriff's Department who increased night patrols and strings, said Deputy Sheriff Jon Thompson.

"Here we had folks trying to do the right thing and go green and they were getting hit," said Thompson. "It hurt, especially when it's $17,000 a panel." A string eventually nabbed three men who Thompson said were part of a ring that resold the panels. "It's hard to say for sure but we think they were going directly to growers," said Thompson."   Read article.

 Posted by Kathy Meeh

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

It doesn't matter how man random pictures you add with childish captions -- it still doesn't have anything to do with fixing Pacifica.

Anonymous said...

Doing research on solar power right now. Had some salesman knock on the door one day but didn't like the weak web site they had. Calling out a couple companies after the holidays to talk to them.

Has anyone went solar, if so can you post about it.

Kathy Meeh said...

What you call "random and childish captions" I call creative sophistication, Anon 9:16 AM. And I suspect the creative part of my background gives me license to do that. Articles I post generally get framed with indicators of the article. That's just how it is. You could comment on elements of the article, similar to Anonymous 9:43 AM, but you did not. Rather you chose to the lower road again. That speaks to your intellect and character.

Anon 9:43 AM, I'm doing similar research. Solyndra may be one company to consider. Solar is a big investment. There are 20-year leases, however more money invested the lower the lease costs, the lower the electric utility cost. The details from Solyndra about the lease cost (interest rate etc.) were fuzzy. I'm thinking its better to buy the system outright.

View what comments about solar you can find on the internet. That added a lot of education for me. Ask any friends who have such a system. A friend has an older system, likes it, lower utility cost. That friend bought one panel more than was suggested. Hence, electric utility is a credit, rather than an expense.

Anonymous said...

oh anon 916 what's the harm with this prattle?

Anonymous said...

Wow, what does a websites strenth have to do with whether a solar company is good or bad? It really amuses me how some people shop for services. Oh well, I guess the 10% of dumb consumers allows the rest of us to get the real values.

Anonymous said...

Of course "smart shopper" 125, you were probably shopping for bananas, rather than solar.

Anonymous said...

I'd rather a construction company put their money into saving me money that making a pretty website with all the bells and whistles.

Anonymous said...

Bells and whistles? It's called being competitive in your market.

Anonymous said...

Yeah I was going to have Joe's Roofing do my house but i went with a company with a better website even though it's twice the price because the interwebz is the future man.

Anonymous said...

Leasing isn't the answer from what I have read. Buying them are. This website was so cheesey and unprofessional they turned me off.

In roofing you get what you pay for. You pay a guy with experience, and an experienced crew. You want someone to know where to find rot and fix everything right. Roofs are tough in Pacifica, cause not only do we have a lot of rain, but drizzle and fog in the summer time. A roof put on correctly will not let moss grow and get between the shingles and cause leaks.

So in roofing you really get what you pay for.

Anonymous said...

@745 Clearly, you have bigger problems than simple ignorance of current business practices. You be careful out there!

Hutch said...

There are plenty of local honest, reputable, top notch contractors that do not even have websites, let alone a great website.

Many people wrongly believe that the internet accounts for most retail sales. But the fact is 10 times more retail purchases are still made in person. As an example Black Friday online sales were 1 billion. Compared with in store purchases of 11.2 billion. And most of these people still used print ads to look for deals.



http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/26/black-friday-online-sales_n_2188524.html

Anonymous said...

Hutch, declare your professional bias. Shine some light on your various posts re websites, advertising and such.