solar panels, folding solar panels I don’t think there is a person who has access to any form of media who has not heard about the tragedy in Haiti this week. The devastating earthquake has left the island nation in shambles and reeling to save the injured. From what I saw, watching Diane Sawyer last night, communication is a huge problem on the island. The earthquake knocked out electricity, cell towers and pretty much everything we take for granted in a modern society. During her broadcast, there was even a broken line of communication between her and someone at the other end of an airfield.

Standard forms of electricity are easily broken. A few years ago, a week before Christmas, I came home for the holidays in the Pacific Northwest. A massive snow and windstorm slammed the area knocking out power over much of the state. My home is in a rural area but not much unlike any other wooded suburb. We didn’t have power for over a week, even as crews from out of state, all the way from California drove up to lend a hand. It was cold and miserable. This happened in a very wealthy area of the country. It took over a week to get power. I can only imagine what the brave rescue crews are up against in Haiti.
I want to know if solar panels are a more stable source of electricity especially in a tropical island location. Could an earthquake take out fields of folding solar panels as it did traditional electrical lines? If not, we need to help install a new free electricity infrastructure during the rebuilding of the nation.

Going green has many advantages for the environment but it is also a more stable, sustainable way of life. Solar panels store energy and as long as those batteries aren’t destroyed in a natural disaster they would still provide power especially if the lines were dug underground. Websites like American National Solar at http://www.americannationalsolar.com/ are one of many places working hard to spread the message of solar energy. It is the way of the future and will only get more popular over the next decade. When it comes time to buy my first house one of the first things I am considering is folding solar panels. With so much free electricity floating in the sky, it doesn’t make sense not to grab and utilize it. I hope the new Haiti will be one going green. My prayers go out to everyone there.