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Distributed solar and environmental justice: Exploring the demographic and socio-economic trends of residential PV adoption in California

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  • Lukanov, Boris R.
  • Krieger, Elena M.

Abstract

The rapid growth of distributed solar adoption in California provides an opportunity to lower electricity bills for the adopters and realize additional community benefits, including grid resilience and lower grid emissions. It is unclear, however, whether this transition is occurring equitably across the state's various demographic and socioeconomic groups and whether historically disadvantaged environmental justice (EJ) communities have been able to exploit the bill savings and other associated benefits of rooftop solar. Here we analyze the cumulative and annualized (spatial and temporal) rates of PV adoption across California and compare those with data from the state's cumulative impact EJ methodology (CalEnviroScreen). We find persistently lower levels of PV adoption in disadvantaged communities, suggesting clear distributive and equity impacts of existing PV support policies, and indicating that the benefits bypass some of the state's most vulnerable populations. The analysis reveals strong correlation of solar adoption with not only socioeconomic variables, but also with health, environmental and demographic indicators, contributing to our growing understanding of the role these factors play in household clean-energy adoption trends. The results provide a baseline from which to develop more effective policies, strategically design incentives, and track the efficacy of existing solar programs that target disadvantaged communities.

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  • Lukanov, Boris R. & Krieger, Elena M., 2019. "Distributed solar and environmental justice: Exploring the demographic and socio-economic trends of residential PV adoption in California," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 134(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:enepol:v:134:y:2019:i:c:s0301421519305221
    DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2019.110935
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    6. Wichsinee Wibulpolprasert & Umnouy Ponsukcharoen & Siripha Junlakarn & Sopitsuda Tongsopit, 2021. "Preliminarily Screening Geographical Hotspots for New Rooftop PV Installation: A Case Study in Thailand," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(11), pages 1-30, June.
    7. Grazier, Emma, 2022. "Beyond the Solar Home Price Premium: Solar as a Neighborhood Amenity," 2022 Annual Meeting, July 31-August 2, Anaheim, California 322312, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    8. O'Shaughnessy, Eric & Grayson, Alexandra & Barbose, Galen, 2023. "The role of peer influence in rooftop solar adoption inequity in the United States," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 127(PA).
    9. Lin, Boqiang & Kaewkhunok, Suppawit, 2021. "The role of socio-Culture in the solar power adoption: The inability to reach government policies of marginalized groups," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 144(C).
    10. Emily K. Schwartz & Moncef Krarti, 2022. "Review of Adoption Status of Sustainable Energy Technologies in the US Residential Building Sector," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(6), pages 1-18, March.
    11. Fikru, Mahelet G., 2020. "Determinants of electricity bill savings for residential solar panel adopters in the U.S.: A multilevel modeling approach," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 139(C).
    12. Zhang, Yanquan & Chang, Ruidong & Zuo, Jian & Shabunko, Veronika & Zheng, Xian, 2023. "Regional disparity of residential solar panel diffusion in Australia: The roles of socio-economic factors," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 206(C), pages 808-819.
    13. Yao, Huizong & Zang, Chuanfu, 2021. "The spatiotemporal characteristics of electrical energy supply-demand and the green economy outlook of Guangdong Province, China," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 214(C).
    14. Tinta, Abdoulganiour Almame & Sylla, Ahmed Yves & Lankouande, Edmond, 2023. "Solar PV adoption in rural Burkina Faso," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 278(PB).
    15. Stewart, Fraser, 2021. "All for sun, sun for all: Can community energy help to overcome socioeconomic inequalities in low-carbon technology subsidies?," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 157(C).
    16. Brown, Marilyn A. & Kale, Snehal & Cha, Min-Kyeong & Chapman, Oliver, 2023. "Exploring the willingness of consumers to electrify their homes," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 338(C).
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