Community solar power continues to grow across the US. Now the US capital city, Washington, DC, is getting into community solar thanks to a partnership between Arcadia Power and New Columbia Solar. The companies are launching their effort in the district by replacing the leaking roof of the Celestial Church of Christ with a solar-powered roof that will serve as a community solar project as well. 

As solar power continues to grow and technologies become more advanced it’s important to make sure it’s also safe. So, while Interstate Renewable Energy Council’s (IREC) latest solar guidelines for contractors, installers and inspectors isn’t as interesting as the US passing 50 gigawatts of installed solar power, it’s important, particularly for reducing soft costs of solar power. 

Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy (D) is pushing for new bills that would make it easier for homeowners to solar by establishing simpler net metering rules and establishing fixed rates for homeowners with solar. He and Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Commissioner Rob Klee are advocating for the passage of that and an environmental bill that will help the state achieve emission reduction goals while supporting sustainable energy. 

For the second year in a row the US installed more than 10GWs of solar power, it’s the second highest year on record for the amount of solar installed in the US. In other news New York is committing $1.4 billion to expand renewable energy in the state and New Jersey is poised to pass legislation that would keep solar growth strong in its state. 

General Electric is getting into the large-scale energy storage arena with its new Reservoir system. The new system is a 1.2 megawatt, 4 MW hour (MWh) system that’s contained in a 20-foot box. 

In 2017 the US added 10.6 gigawatts of solar power, it’s the second time in a row that the US added more than 10 GWs of solar power and the second highest year of solar power coming online ever. That’s according to the US Solar Market Insight Report 2017 Year-in-Review from GTM Research and the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), which came out today (March 15).

It appears New Jersey’s legislature wants to ensure that the state will remain one of the US top states for solar. It’s legislative houses have introduced bills that would support residential, community and large-scale solar projects through 2021 and protecting 7,100 jobs in the state, a move that’s garnered support from the solar industry and clean energy advocates. 

Last week New York’s Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) announced that the state would invest $1.4 billion into 26 large-scale renewable energy projects, 22 of which are solar projects. At the same time he announced that the state requested an requested an exclusion from offshore oil drilling while supporting offshore wind power. The projects are expected to add 1.4 gigawatts of renewable energy to the grid, generate more than 3,000 jobs and $3 billion in overall investments.

Last week solar farms were announced that will provide 100 percent of the energy for two separate projects. An Ohio-based Fortune 500 bank went 100 percent solar with a new solar farm as did a Facebook datacenter in Georgia. Meanwhile, Trump’s new aluminum and steel tariffs are expected to have a negative impact on the wind and solar industries. 

This week President Donald Trump (R) imposed tariffs on imported steel and aluminum, both of which are used in wind and solar power installations. It’s essentially a second set of tariffs this year that will impact the solar industry after Trump imposed tariffs on imported silicon solar panels and cells in January. The renewables industries were concerned with the tariffs and are worried they will drive up the price of renewable energy even as costs come down.