Like microgrids, community solar (aka solar gardens) is growing in popularity as the U.S. comes to value clean and local energy. Here Tendril’s Chris Black offers insight into how community solar benefits both utilities and consumers.

Two forces must converge to truly bring solar to the masses: consumers and their utilities.

Put these two forces together and solar becomes feasible for everyone. People living anywhere can join the solar market and enjoy a renewable, price-stable power source, while utilities can claim solar ownership amidst the private players now dominating the industry.

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It sounds simple. And it can be, once consumers learn from their utilities what community solar is and what it can do for them, and when utilities become more adept at marketing and providing it.

Solar PV installments are booming. Q3 2014 represented the second largest quarter ever for solar installations in the U.S., with an increase of 41 percent over Q3 2013.[1] Consumers continue to turn to private solar providers to outfit their homes. Doing so brings pride in going green, reduces their environmental impact, sets their homes apart from their non-solar neighbors, and puts them on the path to long-term return on their clean energy investment.

There’s a catch, though. Rooftop solar may be popular, but in reality its market is extremely limited. Only a fraction of U.S. rooftops can support solar panels. A study by National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) found that as little as 22 – 27 percent of residential rooftop area is suitable for hosting an on-site PV system. Those hitting barriers to solar adoption include potential customers whose roofs don’t have the right pitch, don’t face the right direction, or have too much shading; people living in apartments, renters, or residents planning to move before they could see a pay-off from traditional rooftop solar. These barriers of entry mean that while solar adoption is experiencing hockey stick growth; it is a fraction of what it could be if the rest of the community could be unlocked. This is where community solar shines.

Read More: http://microgridknowledge.com/how-utilities-can-harness-the-power-of-community-solar/