Arkansas, home of former President Bill Clinton, is a verdant, southeastern state, and while it’s the 29th largest state, it’s the 32nd most populous. The state’s primary energy sources are coal and nuclear, but the state has some ample renewable resources, including solar and hydroelectric that the state has not capitalized on.
Arkansas has fallen behind the majority of other states—29—in terms of enacting a renewable portfolio standard or even a renewable energy goal—seven states. As such, its incentive programs for renewable energy pale compared to those offered by other states like California, New York and even Texas. Still, the state has developed various incentive programs to help its residents to adopt solar and other renewable forms of energy. Since it doesn’t require its energy providers to source their electricity from renewable sources, they aren’t compelled to offer incentives to help business owners or homeowners to convert to renewable electricity.
Thanks to Arkansas’ southern location, it gets slightly less than 5 hours of direct sunlight per square meter, making it a decent location for solar. It doesn’t get as much sun as states to its west like Texas, but it gets more than states to its east like Tennessee. The state also has potential to develop some wind power the EIA said and other potential renewables in the state include more hydroelectric, wood, and wood waste power generation.
To encourage Arkansans to adopt renewable energy and energy efficiency the state has enacted green building standards for state facilities. While the state offers some incentives for renewables, like rebates and net metering, much more of the state’s incentives focus on energy efficiency in homes, including incentives for tuning up air conditioners.
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