Los Angeles Unveils World's Largest Solar Plan

November 25th, 2008 by Ariel Schwartz

San Francisco is usually designated the green capital of California, but now Los Angeles solar is trying to take the City by the Bay’s crown with the world’s largest solar plan. Yesterday, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa announced a long-range plan to gather enough solar power to meet 10 percent of LA’s energy needs by 2020. This will be a major upgrade for the city, which currently derives less than 1 percent of its energy from solar power.

The ambitious plan requires enough solar panels to produce 1,280 MW of power. Villaraigosa’s plan will require the use of both public and private facilities to generate power— and will cost LA residents approximately 2 dollars a month once it is completed.

The majority of the plan’s power (500 MW) will come from private facilities in the Mojave Desert, while 380 MW of power will come from small programs.

Despite the good intentions behind the solar plan, critics worry that the measure will increase the price of solar energy. However, pricing may even out with coal when a carbon tax is passed in the United States.

Photo Credit: Fareastgizmos.com









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