Alternative Energy Forums

What is so ubiquitous but is also an ideal place to put solar panels? In every city, along almost every road there are thousands upon thousands of......power poles. Power poles, light poles, cell towers, power transmission towers, highway sign supports etc. Places that already have power going to them so there would be no need to run lines from remote solar or wind farms. A few panels with the necessary inverters on each pole, or a series of poles tied into an inverter, a whole lot of panels on interstate spanning highway sign supports, etc.. For that matter, any flat roofed building can support large-scale systems. Significant investment in the current technology would be a huge step in the right direction and this is a way to do it. Then the money spent purchasing these products could be used in research and development to create even more efficient products.

City, state, and the federal government could buy the panels and create an incentive to increase efficiency by saying 'We will buy new panels from (company) providing they increase efficiency by ? percent in 3 years' or something to that effect. Hmmm, but what to do with the replaced panels? Ahah, sell them to the public at a discount!!! It's the trickle down effect. Think about it.

That's NOT dump.
There are a lot of wasted places that could be useful and productive.
Thanks for your comment!

Ramreb

I do agree with you in part. That there are many places with waisted space that could be utilized to install PV panels. And many of the locations that you refer to should be looked at as potential alternate mounting locations.

The biggest problem that comes from adding solar panels as you suggest is when ever the power company has to maintain the lines or when a power line goes down and the power needs to be shut down to that section of line.

The power lines would still have power being supplied to them from the panels. This is why most states require a master disconnect in systems for net metering. Some states require manual master disconnects and some require automated.

In the type of installations that you are referring too it would have to be automated. In an emergency situation it might take hours to send linemen out to disconnect all the power supplies to the line. With the possibility of loss of human life or at the very least a long delay in making repairs to people homes.