CA Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger pumps up solar power. Goal is to stimulate construction of 1 million solar roofs

A bill that makes California’s solar program the largest in the nation, enabling more homeowners and businesses to get credit on their monthly bills for energy from solar panels, was signed Monday by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

The bill, SB 1 by state Sen. Kevin Murray, D-Los Angeles, is an important piece of the administration’s anti-global warming campaign and completes the California Solar Initiative implemented in January by the Public Utilities Commission.

The bill’s goal is to stimulate construction of 1 million solar roofs, both business and residential, in California by 2018, according to Schwarzenegger. As a point of comparison, there are currently 240 homes with solar roofs in Oakland, according to the nonprofit Northern California Solar Energy Association.

Schwarzenegger predicts the bill will create 3,000 new megawatts of solar power in California, the amount of energy typically produced by six large power plants. Entities as diverse as NorCal Solar, Environment California and Pacific Gas and Electric Co. applauded the bill’s passage Monday.

By Janis Mara, BUSINESS WRITER

Full Story: http://www.insidebayarea.com/business/ci_4218263