Solar power

The new law will require historic district commissions to consider climate change and greenhouse gas reduction goals when evaluating the appropriateness of solar panels in historic districts.

A commission created by Gov. Maura Healey is recommending the state accelerate the approval of renewable energy projects and change the role of local communities in that process.

The 45,000 people who live in Cape Cod's Old Kings Highway Historic District are required to get approval from local committees for visible solar installations. Those who have had their solar plans challenged or denied have described the committees’ decisions as inconsistent, arbitrary, and subjective.

A report finds the business of solar has skyrocketed over the last decade or so in Massachusetts. But now a familiar perk associated with solar panels is fading out.

The overall goal of a new bill proposed by state senator Julian Cyr is to establish solar within historic districts across the state as a public necessity, just like utility poles and wires and other systems.

The solar developer is working on a project to transform 70 of 140 acres on the historic golf course into an energy-production hub.

The town of Falmouth is one step closer to approving a huge solar farm on land owned by the Cape Cod Country Club that could provide the community with more than one-sixth of its electricity needs.

Massachusetts is pushing hard on the renewable energy front, with more than 1600MW solar installed and a target of 1600MW offshore wind energy by 2020.…

Solar energy currently generates just two percent of Massachusetts’ total electric power. Backers of solar energy hope to bring that number up to 20…

New England’s energy system is at a crossroads. Economics and climate concerns are driving a shift away from coal and oil, but experts remain divided on…