Solar Power is a Friend to the Chesapeake Bay

As you may be aware, the Chesapeake Bay was once an abundant waterway, home to a teeming population of blue crabs, oysters, rockfish and impressive forests of sea grass. Because Maryland borders the Chesapeake Bay we are on intimate terms with the world’s largest estuary and have known for many decades that our beloved bay is in trouble. 

According to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, sea grass coverage continues to hover at around 20% of historical levels, while blue crab populations have dwindled to 50% of their population levels recorded during the 1980’s. Rockfish continue to struggle to regain a foothold in the Bay and the oyster population is now 98% below historical numbers. In fact, it would take the Bay’s current population over a year to filter the Bays’ waters; at prior population levels it would have taken only a few days! Due to a combination of nitrogen pollution, habitat loss and over fishing, the health of the Bay is in crisis. At a loss of $4 billion during the last 30 years for both water men and the Chesapeake Bay seafood industry, it is indeed a precarious situation for the world’s largest estuary.

Good News Surfaces for the Bay

According to a Bay health scorecard recently released by the University of Maryland, there seems to be a turnaround underway. The blue crab population has gone up, the oyster harvests have increased, amounts of dissolved oxygen in the Bay went up and aquatic grasses have increased by 50% from 2011 to 2015. While there has not been meaningful movement made by either Virginia or Maryland on decreasing the amount of nitrogen pollution generated by poultry farms on the Eastern Shore (in fact, it is has gotten worse), the overall amount of nitrogen has decreased and with it the choking blooms of algae associated. Why?

Connection to Renewable Energy

Check out this gorgeous 9 kW system that we designed for a family back in 2012.

When reviewing us this Customer said that it had been “a pleasure” working with Colette and the MSSI team and that our “friendly” and “knowledgeable,” low-pressure sales approach was appreciated. Since installation in 2012, this satisfied Customer has saved 62,492 lbs of carbon dioxide, equally 1,604 trees having been planted!

Let’s hear it for solar!

        PACE Funding Now Available in      Maryland for Commercial Solar Projects!

PACE Funding is Now Available for Some Counties in Maryland

We are pleased to announce the emergence of Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) funding for Commercial Solar Projects here in Maryland. Currently only available in Montgomery, Howard, Anne Arundel and Queen Anne’s Counties, PACE-funding opportunities are expected to spread into neighboring counties within the next few years here in Maryland.

What Is PACE?

As stated above, PACE stands for Property Assessed Clean Energy, and is a policy that gives business owners an affordable way to mitigate the high upfront costs associated with larger-scale commercial clean energy projects by attaching the amortization of a loan to your yearly property tax payments. Huh?

Here’s the nuts and bolts: in partnership with the State of Maryland, Greenworks Lending provides loans to commercial businesses wishing to invest in clean energy and/or efficiency upgrades. The loan is then paid back through your property taxes over the course of 20 years. The loan is added as a lien to your property taxes for the life of the loan. It does not raise your property taxes by assessing the added value of the solar, but simply adds the loan payments to your yearly property taxes.

In order to apply for PACE funding the borrower in question must be the private owner (i.e. not the government) of the property. The borrower cannot have gone through bankruptcy. The loan amount can be up to 20-30% of assessed value of the building and land of the property.

What’s So Great About PACE?

PACE makes is super-easy to take out a loan, and it gives businesses first-year cash flow. How?

In the first place, PACE allows businesses to lower their overhead immediately by either eliminating or significantly reducing their utility bills. Additionally, with PACE the business owner is able to utilize the Federal 30% Tax Credit, any local incentives, Net Metering, the Maryland Energy Administration Grant, MACRS and the production of SRECs.

Through PACE, Greenworks Lending offers “sculpted ammortization” which means that the bulk of your loan will be paid back within the first 6 years of the array having been installed. For instance, if a borrower takes out $100,000 in PACE financing, during the first year, the borrower would receive $30,000 back from the Federal government on top of being able to depreciate 50% using MACRS. After taxes the borrower will get back an additional $50,000 for having invested in solar. During the first year, the business will pay back a larger portion of their loan. Because of the incentives coming back to the borrower within the first 5-years, the loan payments at the beginning are higher and allow the borrower to virtually pay back the bulk of the loan within the first 6-years. This makes the remaining payments on the loan super-affordable. Pretty awesome!

MSSI is a Registered PACE Contractor

Here at MSSI we’re proud to be a registered PACE Contractor for the State Of Maryland. We can help you look at solar for your business and whether PACE will work for you. PACE really creates an affordable alternative to leasing and power purchase agreements and allow businesses to leverage solar power as an investment and create tax-free value for their properties. Really, its a win-win.

Our latest solar install in Halethorpe, Maryland came to us looking for an installer that was going to install the highest-quality panels he could find. He was very happy with what we were offering.

As part of our continuing “Installation Pictures From the Sky” series; we’re sharing all of our new aerial photos we’re taking of previous installs. Ooolala, solar!

In 2015 a retiree came to us wishing to help the environment and lower her power bills. Pleased with the size of her 5.38 kW system and how much money it saves her we’re happy to report that since installing in June of 2015, this system has generated 10.79 Megawatt hours of energy or 10,790 kilowatts of energy!  In total thus far, this system has saved 16,39.70 lbs of carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere, which is equivalent to 420 trees! We got it just right!

Supreme Court Affirms The Social Cost of Carbon

Good news in the fight against climate change was granted by the Supreme Court this week! The Court ruled against a suit brought by a trade group representing refrigerator manufacturers who were suing the government for its use of the “social cost of carbon” in determining efficiency standards. In effect, the $36 per person calculation determined by a consortium of bureaucrats working in concert with academic economists has been confirmed as a legitimate means to set goals and assess efficiency.

The Social Cost of Carbon

The social cost of carbon has been one of the largest methods used to guide policy decisions with regard to global warming. This theoretical number, or cost, is based upon findings that Michael Greenstone, an economist at the White House, and his cadre of bureaucrats and other economists extrapolated after studying all of the current projections and studies done by economists on the costs of global warming. In fact, the number they eventually settled on, is right in the middle. In other words, some studies put it lower and some higher.

Calculating Social Cost of Carbon

The economic studies in question sought to generate “a comprehensive estimate of climate change damages and includes changes in net agricultural productivity, human health, property damages from increased flood risk, and changes in energy system costs, such as reduced costs for heating and increased costs for air conditioning.” The EPA currently uses the $36 per person as their benchmark and this number, or cost, is what has been used to guide the policies within the Clean Power Plan.

While the Clean Power Plan is on hold, the means by which the Obama Administration and the EPA arrived at their policy choices has been affirmed!

This Sykesville family is among our biggest fans. When one of the home owners called us, she was adamant that she just wanted to work with us. She had read our reviews and was ready to take the plunge.

Having just purchased their dream home, they wanted to go solar! This 10.23 kW system covers their families electric needs by 76%. For the month of August, this system has already produced 223 kWh!

As part of our continuing series; we’re taking a peak at all the new aerial photos we’ve been able to take of our previous installs. Take a look – this looks wonderful!

This 8 kW array was installed for a family in Columbia in the spring of 2012. Since installation, the system has generated 35.06 Megawatts of electricity, saving this family $4,207 in four years. Additionally this system has saved 53,248 lbs of carbon from entering the atmosphere an equivalent to 1,327 trees having been planted.

Our latest install comes out of Arnold, Maryland. This customer came to us looking to go solar in order to save money and cut his costs.

He and his wife have been so pleased with their 7.13 kW system that they’ve been making sure to tell all their family and friends! Thank you, we really appreciate it!

Only a month and half into their installation and this installation has already saved 406 lbs of carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere. Which is equal to have planting 10 trees for the month of August.

  2016 Maryland Greenhouse Gas Bill