Ikea's Bright Potential

This picture was taken on November 15th at the Ikea in College Park, Maryland. This store is one of many Ikeas to have implemented solar panels on the roof and in the parking lot to aid in the fight against climate change. Solar panels utilize semiconductors to produce electricity through the photoelectric effect, thus producing electricity without creating emissions (1). In turn, by producing no emissions, solar panels help to manage the ecological principle known as the greenhouse effect. The greenhouse effect is a process in which materials known as greenhouse gasses (such as carbon dioxide, and methane) trap heat near Earth’s surface creating a sort of blanket effect and warming global temperatures (2). Through the implementation of solar panels, we can increase the usage of clean energy and create a more affordable source as it becomes more cost competitive over time. Therefore, this contributes to the efforts of SDG #7: affordable and clean energy. In broad terms, the goal focuses on increasing the accessibility of clean and modern energy while maintaining affordability and reliability for implementation in all sectors (i.e. residential, business, agriculture, etc.) (3). Solar panels as a renewable energy source are naturally clean and use more modern technologies to create an innovative solution. Additionally, they are also a relatively cost competitive option, making them more accessible in their affordability. According to the International Energy Agency, solar panels actually produce the cheapest electricity of all sources–including fossil fuels (4). The levelized cost of solar also improves over time, becoming cheaper as the technology becomes more efficient and developed (5). So, the implementation of solar panels continuously helps to fight the greenhouse effect while providing clean and affordable energy to all those in need of electricity. In this sense it helps to achieve SDG #7 through the production of solar energy and also helps in reducing climate change impacts by limiting the greenhouse effect to the correct level. Ikea’s solar is used on site with some battery storage, so although it doesn’t contribute to public availability of electricity, it still helps to encourage the use of renewable energy. Therefore, in this picture the ecological concept of the greenhouse effect is being managed through the implementation of solar panels. This in turn meets SDG #7 by providing a clean and affordable energy source to a business, reducing emissions and reliance on fossil fuels in industry. The solar panels also provide energy to a couple of electric car chargers within the parking, allowing EV owners easy access to a clean charger while shopping.

 

Sources:

1) “PV Cells 101: A Primer on the Solar Photovoltaic Cell .” Department of Energy, www.energy.gov/eere/solar/articles/pv-cells-101-primer-so....

2) “What Is the Greenhouse Effect? - NASA Science.” NASA, NASA, science.nasa.gov/climate-change/faq/what-is-the-greenhouse-effect/.

3) “Goal 7 | Department of Economic and Social Affairs.” United Nations, United Nations, sdgs.un.org/goals/goal7.

4) Staff, Carbon Brief. “Solar Is Now ‘Cheapest Electricity in History’, Confirms IEA.” Carbon Brief, 11 Oct. 2021, www.carbonbrief.org/solar-is-now-cheapest-electricity-in-....

5) Iea. “Levelised Cost of Electricity Calculator – Data Tools.” IEA, www.iea.org/data-and-statistics/data-tools/levelised-cost....

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