The increasing cost of energy has become a major concern, especially for low-income families. In our weekly series with the Bay Journal Delmarva Public Media's Don Rush talks with reporter Lauren Hines-Acosta about efforts in Virginia to increase solar power to meet demand and bring down costs.
RUSH: For low-income families, getting your heating or air conditioning bills under control can be daunting. This is Don Rush. A new study in Virginia finds that with the rising cost of energy, the problem gets worse, especially with the development of data centers. Our weekly series with the Bay Journal, we talk with Lauren Hines-Acosta about the new study and what it means.
HINES-ACOSTA: 6% is the threshold. That's how much is too much. But there were some homes that were much higher. I think about up to 13% in just a few areas. So if you're at that 6% or higher, you're spending too much on energy bills.
RUSH: One of the things that's obviously going to be driving up energy costs perhaps are data centers. What do we know about all of that?
HINES-ACOSTA: Data centers? They're just popping up so much across Virginia. The amount of power they need is huge. I think the JLARC study from last year showed that we're going to see an increase in power demand by 183% by 2040 if it's unconstrained. And so ratepayers are probably seeing that now already, and will continue to see that.
RUSH: So one of the solutions it seems to be, is that the possibility of solar power. What's the situation with that in terms of getting it out there? What sense do you get about that, particularly in trying to help this problem?
HINES-ACOSTA: In some ways, solar can help people get discounts on their energy bills because they can generate their own power and that gets a credit to their bill. Now, the entry to that can be high. It takes about seven to nine years for people to break even on that investment. But there was a Solar For All program that really lowered that barrier to entry. That was the federal program and it is now gone. But Henrico County has actually made a deal with the data center to have the program just for that county, for low income residents to get solar to get those discounts. So there is a world where that could happen.
RUSH: I mean, do we have any sense about how Virginia legislators of Virginia government in general, is there a role here for the state at all?
HINES-ACOSTA: There has been push to help feed that power demand with solar siding, particularly in rural areas, but that's received a lot of pushback. You are concerned about too much state oversight, but Spanberger, the incoming governor, may put a green light on some of those bills that have been in the general assembly, but when it comes to maybe more rooftop solar or things to help people lower their energy bills, the key issue with that is just going to be possibly at the county or city level, establishing ordinances to have solar programs that either help people save money or find a way to actually put solar in their cities or in the rural parts of their counties and that people can sign up for to get that discount because their energy is coming from somewhere that it's being produced.
RUSH: Finally, in terms of the Community Climate Collaborative, obviously it has these reports. What happens with these reports?
HINES-ACOSTA: This nonprofit has been making these reports, I want to say over the last five years, but right now they are working with people at the county level to try and establish more of the programs in their recommendations that came out of the report. I think Albemarle County just passed their comprehensive plan that has some points pushing for more solar in the community. So nonprofit is working at the local level to make some of these recommendations they had at reality.
RUSH: Lauren Hines-Acosta reporter for the Bay Journal on the rising cost of energy and its' impact on low income communities. This is Don Rush for Delmarva Public Media.
