For more information on the environmental benefits of solar energy, please visit the Opportunities for Emissions Savings in the US page. Solar energy is clean energy . Using solar energy to replace the use of traditional fossil fuel energy sources can prevent the release of pollutants into the atmosphere. Using solar energy to supply a million homes with energy would reduce CO 2 emissions by 4.3 million tons per year, the equivalent of removing 850,000 cars from the road. To highlight the environmental benefits of solar energy, EPA developed a solar calculator , which calculates how much pollution can be prevented by using photovoltaics, solar water heaters and solar heated swimming pools.
Solar energy uses fewer natural resources than conventional energy sources .
Using energy from sunlight can replace the use of stored energy in natural resources such as petroleum, natural gas, and coal. Fossil fuel extraction can use drilling and mining techniques that leave land undesirable for other uses after the energy source has been removed. Furthermore, PV panels can be integrated into building surfaces for the production of power, eliminating additional land use. For example, the 100,000 square foot roof of a typical discount retailer could produce more than a megawatt of solar electricity. Solar energy systems need less space to produce a megawatt of electricity than coal fired power when the land devoted to mining is factored in.