Comments on: Treehuggers vs. Solar Supporters: Who Cares More About the Environment? http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/discoblog/2008/02/21/treehuggers-vs-solar-supporters-who-cares-more-about-the-environment/ Quirky, funny, and surprising science news from the edge of the known universe. Mon, 06 Oct 2008 18:32:45 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.3.1 By: John http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/discoblog/2008/02/21/treehuggers-vs-solar-supporters-who-cares-more-about-the-environment/#comment-3653 John Fri, 22 Feb 2008 17:10:07 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/discoblog/2008/02/21/treehuggers-vs-solar-supporters-who-cares-more-about-the-environment/#comment-3653 This is a neighbor dispute, not an environmental one. One LANDSCAPE tree in an overcrowded grouping will be removed. Another will be moved. Six remain in place. There is no effective habitat, the trees only provide shade to the solar panels not the buildings, and the impact on aesthetics are minimal. These are not "towering majestic beasts". This is not a forest Mr. Vargas exploited a little know section of a reasonable statute. Where do you draw the line between existing trees and solar panels? In California if the trees shade the panel within the first year of the panel's installation the trees take precedence. If those trees die they can be replaced. If the panel gets full sun in it's first year, the panel has precedence. This section of the law is rarely used. This is a neighbor dispute, not an environmental one. One LANDSCAPE tree in an overcrowded grouping will be removed. Another will be moved. Six remain in place. There is no effective habitat, the trees only provide shade to the solar panels not the buildings, and the impact on aesthetics are minimal. These are not “towering majestic beasts”. This is not a forest

Mr. Vargas exploited a little know section of a reasonable statute. Where do you draw the line between existing trees and solar panels? In California if the trees shade the panel within the first year of the panel’s installation the trees take precedence. If those trees die they can be replaced. If the panel gets full sun in it’s first year, the panel has precedence.

This section of the law is rarely used.

]]>