You can see fights play out at the local level. Until recently, Nevada utilities bought surplus electricity from rooftop solar panels at the retail rate — what energy wonks call net metering. The practice made solar cost-effective for homes and business, but it threatened the bottom line of power companies. In a win for utilities, state legislators gouged net metering, dealing a blow to Nevada’s nascent clean energy industry. Solar companies are now fleeing the state, absconding with hundreds of jobs.
The fight over net metering exposed a rift among conservatives. On one side, conservative advocacy groups funded by electric utilities and fossil fuel producers oppose net metering. On the other side, Tea Party conservatives have aligned with left-leaning environmental groups in support of net metering. Together, these groups have fought for clean energy in Oklahoma, Georgia and Florida, among other states. While Tea Partiers lack deep pockets, they are flush with public support.
According to a poll from the conservative ClearPath Foundation, 72 percent of Republicans want the U.S. to accelerate the growth of clean energy. Even those who doubt the human fingerprint on global climate change see clean energy as a force for good. Renewables represent energy independence, economic vitality and resilience in the face of a terrorist strike. Proponents say distributed solar panels and wind turbines are less vulnerable to attack than centralized power plants.
http://www.alternet.org/environment...-states-and-its-splitting-conservatives-apart
Some trends in the wind power industry. A similar development is taking place in solar power.
I cannot wait for green energy output to overtake fossil fuels. The Tea Partiers are breaking with the Koch financiers of the Tea Party movement. They are fifth columnists.
