Let There Be Light Power

As natural gas inventories swell and prices swoon, the state of Texas should go out of its way to encourage the expansion of the solar energy industry.  Our star has made it possible for life to exist on Earth.  We use the sun's energy to power the satellites that make our real-time lives possible.  Scientists know how to harness the energy radiated by the sun to put electricity on our power grids, but the concerns of existing energy generation industries prompt those companies to pursue legislation, tax breaks and subsidies that price solar power out of the market.

As technology proceeds at an ever increasing rate, new possibilities emerge seemingly on a daily basis.  This is true across many industries.  What has also been true across those same industries is the following--those profiting from current methods have almost no incentive to change their ways.  In the energy industry, this is changing.  Coal power plants are going away.  Around the globe, countries (most notably Brazil) are insulating themselves from oil price shocks by powering vehicles with liquid natural gas. 

In Texas, natural gas is a curious case.  The ability to extricate methane from shale formations thousands of feet below the Earth's surface was perfected in Texas.  Thousands of gas wells have been drilled in the Fort Worth area alone.  Hydraulic fracturing has led to the opening of shale fields both nationwide and globally.  This gas "wildcatting" is beginning to show long term consequences.  Be it water supply contamination, aesthetic insults, foul-smelling gas towns or possibly even earthquakes in unforeseen places, the bloom is fading from the gas rose.  Still the sun shines.  In fact, on the gravel pads that surround natural gas wells, production data is collected and sent to home offices via solar power.  Even the mythical Texas oil man knows the affordable power of the sun.

The sun will keep radiating energy at least as long as humanity exists.  Solar energy is truly an inexhaustible resource.  If we can put water-filled tubes on our roofs to soak up sunlight to keep our pools warm, why can't we use solar energy to keep our homes themselves warm?  The biggest barrier to a solar-dominated energy infrastructure is cost.  A forward-looking government should seek to nurture an industry that capitalizes on a resource that is abundant beyond comprehension.  Well-written and well-regulated incentives for the production and dissemination of solar energy can keep Texas atop the energy production pyramid.  Oil and gas will still be the engines of the near future, but the power that facilitated our being will allow us to abide.