via Mother Nature Network
Modern planners are building compact cities, believing tightly controlled zones are better for the environment.
New research suggests the opposite: urban sprawl might be a better option, with solar power fitted to suburban houses and the adoption of electric cars transforming the energy needs of a city.
Research in Auckland, New Zealand – the largest urban area in the country and a city built for the age of the motor car – shows that solar panels fitted to the average suburban home can produce enough power for that household, extra to charge an electric vehicle, and still generate enough watts to export a surplus to the grid.
Power for the urban core
Adopting a citywide approach to fitting solar panels and providing charging points for cars would enable suburban homes to provide most of the power for the city center as well as keeping the transport running, according to Hugh Byrd, professor at the School of Architecture at the University of Lincoln in England.
In collaboration with the New Zealand Energy Center and the University of Auckland, Byrd and his colleagues found that detached suburban houses typical of an auto-age city are capable of producing ten times more solar power than is possible from skyscrapers or other commercial buildings. The calculations are based on a detailed cross section of Auckland, which has skyscrapers in its business center but has most of its homes spread out over the surrounding countryside in an urban sprawl.
Although every city is different, the pattern of building in Auckland is repeated in many cities around the globe. Byrd’s idea: If planners insist solar panels be fitted to properties and charging points be provided for electric cars, then cities judged to be damaging to the environment could be transformed.
The Latest Bing News on:
Solar Suburbia
- Al Qudra: Modern suburb with a Dubai twiston July 2, 2021 at 1:45 pm
And now, since the level of amenities on offer has increased so dramatically, we want for nothing.” Lakes, cycling, town centres and quaint architecture with a modern twist, that’s what Al Qudra is ...
- Spy Photos: New Ford Bronco Hybrid With Built-in Overland Accessories?on July 2, 2021 at 12:40 am
Our spy photographer snapped some photos of this Bronco prototype with a snorkel, a possible built-in camper top, and a wrap with clues.
- 2 Stocks to Buy When the Market Crasheson July 1, 2021 at 3:20 am
A stock market crash is inevitable because just as night follows day, market swoons are a natural outgrowth of the normal business and investment cycle. No one can forecast exactly when it will strike ...
- Concentrated Solar Power Market to reach USD 16.41 billion by 2027 - Report by Market Research Future (MRFR)on June 29, 2021 at 10:12 am
New York, June 29, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Concentrating Solar Power Market Overview: According to a comprehensive research report by Market Research Future (MRFR), “Concentrating Solar Power Market ...
- Where Are The Autonomous Lawnmowers?on June 28, 2021 at 5:00 pm
Having a nice lawn has become a status symbol of modern suburbia all across the globe. When the aliens arrive, one of the first things they will surely notice is how nice our front lawns are.
- Crime + Punishment In Suburbiaon June 24, 2021 at 5:00 pm
Crime + Punishment In Suburbia starts from a rotten idea, and gets worse. It's Dostoevsky's Crime And Punishment re-imagined as a high school dating movie and performed by a bunch of actors ...
- Verditek Falls on Stock Shortfall Linked to Theft at Factoryon June 24, 2021 at 12:15 am
By Sabela Ojea Shares in Verditek PLC on Thursday fell after the company said that it has suffered a theft at its factory of Lainate, Milan, suffering ...
- The world’s most awesome off-grid homeson June 15, 2021 at 12:07 pm
Building in suburbia is one thing ... The house is entirely off-grid and solar panels provide energy and hot water. It also offers passive heating and cooling, while its site orientation allows ...
- The Morning Jolton June 12, 2021 at 5:00 pm
4. The Dirt on Clean Energy. Julie Kelly has a terrific report on how environmentally toxic discarded solar panels (“piling up all over the world”) are. For example, “solar panels create 300 ...
- Crime + Punishment In Suburbiaon June 8, 2021 at 5:00 pm
Ellen Barkin plays a trampish wife in American suburbia who dates a sleazy bartender (Jeffrey Wright) while her obese second husband (Michael Ironside) sucks beer at home, surfs TV and then ...
The Latest Google Headlines on:
Solar Suburbia
The Latest Bing News on:
Solar power fitted to suburban houses
- 1969 Chevy Suburban Restomod For Sale: Videoon July 2, 2021 at 4:00 am
The GMC Suburban began life in 1934 as a 1935 Chevrolet Carryall Suburban. The Suburban name has been in continuous use longer than any other, with the only production hiatus occurring during World ...
- Could 3D printing be the future of homebuilding? See this demo houseon July 1, 2021 at 9:15 pm
If you didn't notice your only neighbor was a concrete manufacturing facility, it would be easy to think that 1843 Middle Road in Calverton, New York, was just another new, modern suburban home with ...
- Guest view: Keep current zoning, deny solar special use permiton July 1, 2021 at 5:00 am
Butte’s Zoning Board has been asked to consider a zoning change to land in south Butte from single-family residential to commercial to accommodate an industrial-scale solar farm to power a ...
- Going Off-Grid With Solar Panels: Everything You Need to Knowon June 30, 2021 at 3:23 pm
Considering switching to off-grid solar energy? Learn the pros and cons of different systems, regulations, and how to break down the costs.
- Solar homes pay 30% less for power than non-solar homes, even while using moreon June 27, 2021 at 9:51 pm
ACCC report puts economic benefits of rooftop solar up in lights. But where are those bill savings coming from? And what does the answer mean for future solar homes?
- Which Is Better: Wind Turbines vs. Solar Panels for Homeon June 25, 2021 at 5:46 pm
There are pros and cons to both wind turbines and solar panels for home energy generation—which is best for you depends on a multitude of factors.
- Solar Mounts LLC expands PV module coverage on its carport foundationson June 25, 2021 at 11:19 am
Photovoltaic foundations manufacturer Solar Mounts LLC recently designed and engineered seven- and eight-high portrait solar carport systems. The canopies ...
- We Need To Build Zero-Carbon Homes. And Fast.on June 24, 2021 at 7:12 am
The future zero-carbon home is well within our grasp. The technologies we need already exist and are coming down in cost.
- Springdale set to flip switch for solar energyon June 19, 2021 at 11:03 pm
The city will flip the switch Friday to convert the Springdale Recreation Center to electricity provided by solar power and to save an estimated $24,000 a year.
- Urban solar interconnection can be modernized, simplified and standardizedon June 18, 2021 at 5:00 am
Modern meter collars can accelerate the transition to urban solar as a standardized connection point for rooftop solar systems.
