The golden child in the form of solar power could actually be harming the environment, one energy company claims.
North State Journal reports have uncovered Duke’s request for North Carolina regulators to reduce air quality emission limits for a number of its combustion turbine facilities. Duke reportedly hopes to lower the air pollution that it says it is convinced is caused by the rising trend of solar power.
Currently, North Carolina is second in the country (behind California) for the number of installed solar plants.
According to Duke's research, pollutant nitrogen oxide emissions have gone up.
The North State Journal reports that nitrogen oxide emissions increase on sunny days when solar power is at its maximum output because of how traditional power plants operate.
"That’s because traditional power plants – including cleaner burning natural gas plants – must scale back electric generation to accommodate solar energy surging onto the system when the sun rises, and power back up when the sun sets and solar energy dissipates," North State Journal reports. "That starting and stopping reduces efficiency and incapacitates emission control devices, increasing pollutant levels."
Duke is said to be worried about the possible switch in lowering amounts of carbon dioxide, which could be an actual reality if regulations call for Duke to lower nuclear plant output so it can receive solar electricity.
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