Green Counsel

Solar Panels Should Be Exempt from Property Tax Assessments

A Trenton Times editorial today discusses NJ homeowners who placed solar panels on their home only to find that the Town Tax Assessor slapped them with a $12,000 increase on the value of their home, leading to a $400 increase in property taxes.

At one time, New Jersey exempted solar panels from property taxes, but the exemption was not renewed in 1988. The Times argues that the exemption should be reenacted and that the tax assessment undermines the state's tax credits that are designed to create an incentive for solar. "Given what we now know about mankind's role in global warming," says the Times, "there shouldn't be disincentives to going green."

Plumbers Like Water... duh!

If sustainability is ever going to take off, it will  be crucial to get the trade unions suppportive.  Indeed, the idea of a a blue-green alliance between traditional blue collar workers and environmentalists has tremendous potential and is one of the motivations in the founding of the Apollo Alliance.  It could even be key in bringing the Presidency back to the Democrats.

But how to get them aligned?  In Philadelphia, the  plumbers union is blocking Liberty Property Trust's plan to install no-flush, water-saving urinals in the men's rooms at the Comcast Center. Without the toilets, the 57-story skyscraper would use extra 1.6 million gallons of water a year, and may have trouble obtaining U.S. Green Building Council certification and beating out Manhattan's Bank of America Tower as the nation's tallest green building.

According to the Phildalephia Inquirer (http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/news/14131612.htm),  "Those involved in the urinal debate say the plumbers object to the waterless devices because they require less labor to install than the traditional kind. The city's building code has no provision for waterless urinals. And because the plumbers are so opposed to the technology, Philadelphia officials are reluctant to introduce its use in the city. . . Ironically, the Philadelphia Water Department has been looking for ways to reduce the water flowing into the city's overburdened sewer system. After a heavy rain, the city must often release untreated sewage into the Delaware River. 'Waterless urinals would certainly be in line with our sustainable goals,' said Glenn Abrams, the department's urban watersheds planner."

So how do we get people to see beyond their narrow and short-term self-interest and have a more world-centric view of life?

Regulatory Barriers to Sustainable Development

The San Jose Mercury News recently reported on a problem that is happening around the country: a local planning board in Los Gatos, CA ordered the owner of a small solar power company to remove or cover up 18 solar panels he installed on his office roof because three were visible from the street -- the board was concerned about ``design impacts and architectural compatibility.''

The article reports that "Dozens of other cities across California are making life difficult for people who want to install solar panels on roofs and businesses, even as state leaders are trying to encourage renewable energy with millions in tax credits and rebates. Some cities require that solar panels can't be seen from roads. Others say they must be installed at the same angle as roofs, which can limit the electricity they generate."

http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/6448345.htm

Similar problems exist around the country. In New York, for example, some counties are requiring solar installers to have a master electrician's license, and most master electricians are not interested in doing solar installations.

What are some other examples of regulatory barriers to sustainable development and how can these issues best be addressed?