Solar Assistance

As energy prices spike and economic conditions diminish, more families are torn between the need to heat their homes and the need to buy other necessities, like food or medicine. In Minnesota alone, around 73 million dollars of State and Federal Energy Assistance budgets are spent helping to pay the heating bills of low-income families each year, and this number is expected to rise. Although this amount seems enormous, only 36% of Minnesota families who qualify are actually served. While Energy Assistance is a necessary social service, it has yet to offer a lasting solution to the persistent problem of fuel poverty and the continued need for fossil-fuel based heating assistance.

RREAL has a unique and innovative way of dealing with the issue of fuel poverty. Through our Solar Assistance Program , we install, at no cost to the homeowner, clean solar heating systems on households qualifying for public Energy Assistance. Providing supplemental heating equipment that operates independent of expensive fuels offers a genuine and lasting change for the family. These systems can contribute from 10 to 30 percent of the families’ heating load, the typical amount covered by Energy Assistance, thereby reducing or eliminating the need for government aid.

In addition to the social benefits of reduced heating costs, there are environmental impacts to our program as well. In the chilly Upper Midwest, over 50% of annual energy consumption is directly used for space heating. By reducing the need for fossil-fuel based heating among rural families in our program, we reduce emissions of greenhouse gases, mercury, cadmium, and particulate matter. Our program is timely from both an ecological and social viewpoint.

Solar Assistance contributes to:
* Rural Poverty Alleviation
* Reduction of Air Pollution
* Self-Reliance & Sustainable Living
* Education and Awareness of Renewable Energy
* Ending Program Dependency and Taxpayer Savings