Cloud computing, virtual machines, low PUE claims, being the greenest and most sustainable. Every enterprise and vendor claims to have squeezed the last watt out of operations just to lay claim to the title of being the most efficient operation in the world. So when driving down the highway the other day, I came across this installation (see the photo) and could not help but think: Was this an ingenious or absurd application of a solar installation for increased power efficiency and 24x7 use of solar panels?
Think about it. How ingenious is it to have a solar panel that is operational 24x7? Doesn’t the installation of a solar panel under a streetlight make the installation more efficient? Doesn’t the design of this installation allow the solar panel to produce more power? Is the additional power generated by the streetlight considered a green power source?
It’s absurd, say the purists. It’s ridiculous. Streetlights are installed to provide area lighting at night for safety and security. The installation of anything that interferes with those functions defeats or degrades the purpose for which the streetlight was intended. The solar panel blocks the light and casts shadows on the ground that could possibly obscure a pedestrian from view.
Furthermore, the deliberate installation of a solar panel below a streetlight for the specific intention to regenerate electricity is an efficiency application run amuck. If the streetlight has so much excess light (power) it would be far wiser to use less energy by installing a lower wattage light that more closely matched the lighting need. The power losses due to the multiple transformations of electricity to light and then back to electricity make the process terribly inefficient. Finally, this installation is anything but green. The nighttime electrons are all sourced from the utility and cannot be considered green power.