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New California building requirements save energy — and not just with solar panels
Kirk Nason shows how he tracks the electricity generated by his solar panels on his phone. Some of the power is stored in his Tesla PowerWall, a home battery system visible in the background.
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Emily Guerin/KPCC
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Installation of solar panels in a South Sacramento home on Monday, May 18, 2015.
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Carl Costas/ CALmatters
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Listen
4:43
New California building requirements save energy — and not just with solar panels
California is now the first state in the country to require all new houses to have solar panels, starting in 2020. The goal is to slash greenhouse gas emissions. But until we can store solar power affordably, we’re still going to be relying on fossil fuels when the sun goes down.
Kirk Nason shows how he tracks the electricity generated by his solar panels on his phone. Some of the power is stored in his Tesla PowerWall, a home battery system visible in the background.
(
Emily Guerin/KPCC
)
KPCC spent some time in Huntington Beach with Kirk Nason, whose home is super energy efficient. Nason says of the new building code requirements: "It's a no brainer."
This story is part of a new collaboration, Elemental: Covering Sustainability, which focuses on sustainability in the West and involves KJZZ, KPCC, Cronkite News, Arizona PBS, Rocky Mountain PBS and Southern California PBS.
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