Photo Voltaic & Sustainable Energy for Hawaii

I wanted to write about this extremely important issue that relates to Hawaii in numerous ways. From the top of the mountain to the ocean and reef. Energy affects all of us, it could be the cost of our electric bill all the way to impacting the environment as a whole.

I had a meeting with Pai Kamana members and a guest speaker named Dr. Allen. He is a chemist instructor here at MCC. Anyway he came and spoke to our group for about an hour. He gave us a very brief overview of what we could do here on Maui with photo voltaic energy. He said that we could be world leaders in creating a plan to go green and create sustainable energy here in the islands. I really liked what he had to say, it really made sense and I want to help support this move towards a cleaner, cheaper and better world for all of creation. Dr. Allen had a lot of information about what we could and should demand as students to aid the energy crisis here on campus. I think that he would be a great guest speaker in our class, so that everyone could hear what he had to say. Basically new construction on campus is still using old technology and energy wasting methods instead of the new and better way of photo voltaic "green and free from the sun" energy. We could have a learning class that teaches and installs the photo voltaic panels on campus on every building. By doing this we would be able to reduce the energy bill at MCC and have all that extra money for scholarships or programs or classes or higher pay for our all important instructors. There is so much that we could be doing with "going green" and creating a sustainable future as well as energy. These students would then go out into the community and do the same. It would create jobs, businesses and a greener future for Hawaii and help everything with the trickle-down effect. Dr. Allen said that the Bill Gates of the future will be in sustainable energy and photo voltaics, this will be the wave of the future, why not be the leaders here on Maui. The main point that Dr. Allen said to us was that until we as a state CHANGE POLICY AND MANDATE NEW BUILDING LAWS THAT REQUIRE THE IMPLEMENTATION OF SUSTAINABLE ENERGY AND PHOTO VOLTAICS, NOTHING WILL CHANGE. He said that we have to write to our legislature and demand the CHANGE IN POLICY AND THE PERMIT PROCESS, so that changes will occur. Until we do this as a whole it will not move fast enough to make much of a difference in our islands or life. This is a time where we all need to unite and make it happen for all of our future to improve as well as the earth.

There is so much to cover and I can not do justice on this blog, I am just providing a brief overview to this critical subject. I also got an email from Save Makena that relates to this same topic of discussion. http://savemakena@gmail.com :
This according to Savemakena.com:
*Maui needs to end its addiction to imported oil (palm oil or fossil fuel oil, they're both junk!) and start creating an economy in "Green Collar Jobs", and then we can also get off our dependency on development so we can save our special places instead of build them up!Go check out the renewable energy forum @ Kihei Community Center Tomorrow night at 6:30pm. Abengoa Solar, the world's largest solar electric plant is coming to present to Maui's public, legislators and candidates, their sustainable energy production.
1.) Tuesday, Oct. 28th, 6:30-9 pm: Renewable Energy Forum-Kihei Community Center- See attached Flyer. There will be a Q&A also.

I also found an article in the current issue of Maui Time Weekly: Here Comes the Sun: Harnessing Hawaii's Renewable Energy Resource. It is a great article and covers a lot of information relating to renewable solar, wind and wave energy here in the islands. The article also talked about the solar company Abengoa that will be at the forum at Kihei Community Center on October 28, 2008. The article talked about the many jobs that would emerge via this technology, the benefit to the environment as well as lower energy bills and our future. I like this move forward for Maui and Hawaii.

Here is a website that helps to explain what Photovoltaics are and how they work with the sun to produce electricity. http://www1.eere.energy.gov/solar/pv_basics.html This is put out by the US Department of Energy on Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. I truly believe that this is an issue that we all must learn about and help to enforce as "new policy" for our islands future. It just makes perfect sense! The oil is and will run out completely! Why not start the change process now? Before the oil runs out and we are left in panic mode. I want to be on this wave of change! Mahalo Annjulie