Why new San Francisco buildings will require solar panels

Earlier this month San Francisco passed legislation that will require all new buildings under 10 stories tall to be outfitted with solar panels, effective January 2017. This will make the California city the largest municipality in the United States.

The Better Roofs Ordinance was passed unanimously by the city’s Board of Supervisors, and will apply to new constructions both commercial and residential. City supervisor Scott Wiener introduced the legislation this past February, and believes the city must continue to pursue aggressive renewable energy policies to ensure a sustainable future for the region. 

Solar panels are shown atop a housing complex with funding provided by the California Solar Initiative’s Multifamily Affordable Solar Housing (MASH) program in National City, California. Image source: Reuters.

“Activating underutilized roof space is a smart and efficient way to promote the use of solar energy and improve our environment,” Wiener said in a statement. “By increasing our use of solar power, San Francisco is once again leading the nation in the fight against climate change and the reduction of our reliance on fossil fuels.” 

The legislation makes references to combating climate change and expresses concern about the city’s future. “As a coastal city located on the tip of a peninsula, San Francisco is vulnerable to sea level rise, and human activities releasing greenhouse gases into the atmosphere cause increases in worldwide average temperature, which contribute to melting of glaciers and thermal expansion of ocean water — resulting in rising sea levels,” the ordinance reads.

Smaller cities in California already have similar laws in place. San Francisco's new regulations add to existing Californian laws which require 15% of rooftops on buildings of 10 stories or less to be unshaded and solar ready. Under the new law, buildings must have either solar photovoltaic or solar water panels installed, or a mix of the two.

As part of an effort to power the city entirely on renewables in the future, the mayor set up a taskforce back in 2011 to develop policies and programs that steer it in this direction. It hopes to achieve this goal by 2025.

Source: Scott Wiener