Stu slipped into his usual seat at the coffee shop hoping she’d be there.  Wanda stepped in stomping the snow off her boots.  In a fleeting glance they locked eyes as they so often had done.  Stu’s pulse quickened.  Wanda caught her breath. “This time I’m going to do it,” Wanda said to herself.  Picking up her latte Wanda pretended to be looking for a seat.  She took a few steps toward Stu.  “Mind if I sit here?” she asked.  Trying to contain his excitement, Stu smiled and slid over.

        The hours slipped by as they talked and talked.  Stu Ertship had been searching for someone to share his passion for protecting the Earth.  And Wanda Savemorre wanted to share her penny-wise skills in a worthwhile project.

        Over the weeks, Wanda and Stu become inseparable as they forged a partnership and created the concept they call Community Solar.  “With Community Solar, individuals and organizations can become part of the clean energy wave that’s taking over the country even if their home or building isn’t well suited for rooftop solar,” Stu beamed.  “And in doing so they’re pinching every energy dollar they spend,” Wanda added.

        Stu and Wanda worked with Alliant Energy to craft answers to a list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)* about Community Solar, but basically:

• A  relatively small 1-3 MW (megawatt), 10 – 30 acre solar farm is built using an existing substation and transmission lines.
• Alliant Energy customers (individuals and businesses) can buy solar blocks in 250 watt increments to cover up to 100% of their electrical bill.
• Subscribers do not “own” a part of the facility so there is no upkeep or maintenance obligation.  Subscribers agree to buy the reduced-cost electricity from the solar blocks they have purchased.  (Solar blocks can be transferred or sold back if one’s circumstances change.)
• Community Solar projects are ideal for agrivoltaics i.e. using the same property for farming AND energy generation.

 
        Alliant Energy has identified some prime locations for a Community Solar facility in Iowa County.  Their planning committee wants to know that folks here support the benefits a Community Solar project would offer.  “Stay tuned for details on how you can help move this opportunity forward!” Wanda advises. “Together, we can build a brighter future right here where we’re all forever… Earthbound.” 
 
*Learn more at: tinyurl.com/13c8yyet  OR  Contact: iowacountyclean@gmail.com

        Lynn Eeyear sat scratching her head.  “I can’t understand what’s wrong.  This economic system has been working just fine since folks put it to use in the late Middle Ages.  It’s a simple linear model.  You locate resources, extract them and then use them to manufacture products that people want.  When the products eventually break or wear out you toss them into the landfill and start over again.”  Lynn smiled in appreciation of this tidy line of steps.

        Then her smile sank into a frown. “But look at these figures. The first and last steps in this process are killing us!  We’re both covering the Earth with trash and running short on resources at the same time.  At the rate we’re going we’d need 1.6 Earths-worth of raw materials to supply the world demand.  Even worse, if everyone lived like Americans we’d need 4 -5 Earths-worth of resources!” Lynn moaned.

        Just then, as luck would have it, her old friend, Sir Cuellar, stopped by for a cup of tea.  Lynn poured him a cup then poured her heart out about this dilemma.  Sir gave her a wink and suggested an alternative.

        “Folks call it the Circular Economy,” Sir explained. “Plans for what to do with products once they’re no longer useful are created before those products ever leave the factory.  And those plans are paid for in advance.   Instead of stuff marching in line to an eventual grave in the landfill they circle back so that their materials get used over and over again.  But we shouldn’t kid ourselves; this requires a huge shift in our production systems, and the practical economics still need a lot of work.

        “But Mother Nature can show us the way.  She’s been successfully using this technique for millions of years.  Plants and animals extract resources from the Earth.  They grow, reproduce and die.  Their poop and bodies decompose and circle back into the earth.  Or as Aldo Leopold put it, ‘…energy flows out of the soil into plants, thence into animals, thence back into the soil in a never-ending circuit of life,’” Sir concluded.

        As they finished their tea, Lynn said with resolve, “With Mother Nature as our guide we can’t go wrong.  We’ve got to find a  better way forward because this is our only home.  It’s  where we’re all forever… Earthbound.”