Churches, mosques and synagogues are leading the way when it comes to solar energy. Accoring to a new survey conducted by Interfaith Power & Light (IPL), the number of U.S. religious congregations in the U.S. who had installed solar panels had doubled from three years ago.
According to their report, more than 770 faith communities had a combined solar energy capacity of 45 megawatts – that’s nearly the amount of energy created by solar panels installed at major retailers like Kohl’s and Costco.
“We were stunned by the rise. We knew congregations were interested, since we get many requests each week for information and recommendations about solar, but had no idea that solar usage had expanded so rapidly” said IPL President Rev. Susan Hendershot. “It really shows the impact we can have when we act together,” she said.
The Catholic Diocese in San Diego leads the nation with installations that provide 5 megawatts of solar energy power.
“Our solar generating program in the Diocese of San Diego shows the power of doing well by doing good. In his encyclical, Laudato Si, Pope Francis reminds us of our responsibility to care for the Earth as our ‘Common Home.’ Here in San Diego, in addition to our constant efforts to recycle and transition to sustainably sourced products, we’ve installed 51 solar power plants at a number of schools, parishes, and our Diocesan Pastoral Center, ” said Shirley Pajanor, Chief Financial Officer at the Diocese. “That’s good for the environment, but it’s also significantly reduced what we pay for electricity.”
“We are proud that so many faith communities are living out their calling to care for Creation, freeing up resources to invest in their mission, and leading the way to a clean energy future,” said Rev. Hendershot.
“Solar congregations are casting a vision for the kind of world in which they want to live, and then carrying out that vision with practical application.”
Here is a complete list of U.S. congregations that have installed solar panels.
And today we celebrate...