The Blue Planet Foundation says Hawaii will have a legitimate claim to “clean energy leadership” when a new law requiring solar water heaters in new homes takes effect Jan. 1.
“This is the type of transformative policy that will define Hawaii’s clean energy future,” said Jeff Mikulina, executive director of the Blue Planet Foundation, a non-profit organization working to make Hawaii energy independent, in a press release.
“Hawaiçi’s new law brings the benefit of free sunshine to new homeowners across our islands. We are the Saudi Arabia of sun. Every house in the state should be tapping into this free resource.”
Mikulina said solar water heaters are among the most efficient means of reducing an electric bill, with cost reduction estimates running as high as 40 percent.
The law states that no building permit shall be issued for a new single-family dwelling that does not include a solar water heater system that meets newly created state standards.