Tokyo's solar panel mandate a major shift in a country where fossil fuels reign
Source: https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2022/12/18/national/tokyo-solar-mandate-shift/
Author: Tomoko Otake
Tokyo is planning to make the installation of rooftop solar panels on new homes and buildings compulsory from April 2025 as it pushes its people and businesses to shift to renewable energy. The ambitious plan - announced by Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike in September 2021 as part of the capital’s efforts to halve carbon dioxide emissions by 2030 - was greenlighted by the metropolitan assembly through the passage of a related bill. Tokyo is planning to make the installation of rooftop solar panels on new homes and buildings compulsory from April 2025 as it pushes its people and businesses to shift to renewable energy. The ambitious plan - announced by Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike in September 2021 as part of the capital’s efforts to halve carbon dioxide emissions by 2030 - was greenlighted by the metropolitan assembly through the passage of a related bill. Tokyo has huge potential for harvesting solar energy, Furudate explains. Of the over 2.2 million buildings in Tokyo, only 4.24%, or around 95,000, had solar panels installed as of fiscal 2019. The metropolitan government has surveyed every nook and cranny of the city and released a map that shows the solar power-generating potential for individual houses, condos and office buildings according to the size and angle of their roofs and the estimated amount of sunlight that can be harvested.