Quarterly Report to the Technology Assessment Board, April 1 - June 30, 1980 Page: 73
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Studies put heat on DOE solar projects
GAO, OTA reports: many projects overbuilt, . .Sag-.a......
not cost effective, and they often malfunction '....... 8.- .By Wendy Gristmacber
Special to The Christian Science MonitorBoston
In mid-1979, the White House "went solar." The project was sponsored
by the solar and conservation program within the US Department
of Energy (DOE). Total cost: $41,000, and the system is working
fine:
But there is a catch: The system cost four times more than it should
have. Consequently, according to solar energy experts, it never will
pay for itself.
The White House solar project underscores the findings of a recent
General Accounting Office (GAO) report, which found that solar demonstration
projects sponsored by the DOE 'lust aren't practical." The
central issue is the cost effectiveness of the programs the DOE is
instituting.
Another report, issued June 11 by the Office of Technology Assessment
(OTA), says, in the words of project director Alan Crane, 'MThe
DOE has stated its solar energy goals for the year 2000 but it doesn't
have any clear idea on how it's getting from here to there."
Mr. Crane says the solar projects call for "detailed thinking" and
should "key in with other solar interests in order to coordinate a comprehensive
program. The solar project people are not a bunch of j
incompetents. They just have a whole slew of problems to solve."
Neither report rules out solar power as a viable energy source. But
they point out federal solar efforts that have failed, thereby discourag- .
ing further interest and development.
According to Brian Pardo, president of American Solar King Corporation
and assistant researcher for the OTA report, the White House
system was just one example of many overly designed detailed, and
constructed projects.
"For instance, the solar rack on the White House is strong enough
to support a Sherman tank," he says. The system is actually a very
simple hot water setup that is "an engineering monstrosity."
Says Tom Melloy, team coordinator of the GAO study, "With all the
leakage and breakdown problems - out of 104 projects, 55 are
inoperable - we doubt the DOE program sets a very good example."
This poses an image problem for the solar industry, which is trying
to provide the public with an accurate pictrure of solar energy's
benefits.
One problem is that the DOE awards contracts to companies that
may know very little about the solar industry. These companies are
"learning as they go."
"Rather than awarding contracts to companies who know what
they're doing." says Mr. Pardo, "the DOE is dealing with firms used
to doing business with the government. As a result, price and expertise
becomes lesser factors."
For example, the Capitol Development Board Project in Springfield.
mi., is being constructed for a Department of Agriculture building.
So far, the building has been redesigned four times. Thus, costs
have jumped four times.
Another problem is the "prematurity" of the programs being constructed.
Mr. Crane suggests that Congress is pushing the DOE hard.
"The idea seems to be that production will get costs down. While this
may be true in principle, the fact is some programs just aren't technologically
ready to be pushed."
Ineffective management is another problem, says a spokseman for
the Washington-based Solar Lobby. "There are a lot of demands being
made on a staff which is too small for the number of programs being
administrated. What staff the solar program does have could be improved,"
he says.
The studies indicate that DOE needs to set realistic goals and stickWhite House solar panels may never pay for themselves
to them. Says the OTA report, "The solar program must develop its
own perspective in keeping with long-range planning."
The GAO suggests that al solar demonstration projects presently
operating be reevaluated and any faults corrected. Also, practical
projects that function well should be emphasized to encouraging wider
use of solar energy.
While Bennett Miller, DOE's deputy assistant secretary for solar
energy, sees many of the reports' accusations as "flawed," he says the
department is responding with improvements for the solar program.
Staffing is being increased in almost all solar areas, reports Mr.
Miller. Also, annual across-the-board evaluation of solar energy will
be instituted. "We can't force people to use solar energy, but we can
make sure the industry is progressing as it should," he explains.
Program management also is being improved. Concludes Mr.
Miller, "I think we'll go a long way in the next year in blunting criticisms
levelled by the reports."
The DOE solar program began after Congress passed the Solar
Heating and Cooling Demonstration Act in 1974. The act was an effort
to encourage the widespread use of solar energy.-1-1 I.- -. A i I A_- k Ae' - Ik Ai k A
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Office of Technology Assessment. Quarterly Report to the Technology Assessment Board, April 1 - June 30, 1980, text, 1980; Washington, D.C.. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc9232/m1/96/: accessed April 23, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.