Reports

Cincinnati can become a solar city. By collaborating with local businesses, anchor institutions and the green community, city leaders can pave the way for a homegrown solar economy. The Cincinnati public is engaged and eager to embrace more solar power. To replace the dirty, dangerous and outdated energy sources of the past and meet public demand, city government alongside civic and corporate partners should adopt a visionary goal of getting at least 10 percent of Cincinnati’s energy from solar power by 2030. By leading-by-example, getting the finances right and building public literacy of solar options, the city of Cincinnati can surmount today’s obstacles and build a green legacy for current and future generations. By targeting key policy areas the city can remove the barriers to “going solar” and with public education and outreach, leading-by-example projects, and securing greater access to financing options, Cincinnati can make this solar vision a reality.

Over the past decade, the oil and gas industry has fused two technologies – hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling – to unlock new supplies of fossil fuels in underground rock formations across the United States. “Fracking” has spread rapidly, leaving a trail of contaminated water, polluted air, and marred landscapes in its wake. In fact, a growing body of data indicates that fracking is an environmental and public health disaster in the making.