SolarCity received Riverkeeper's "Big Fish" award in New York. Pictured L to R: Riverkeeper Board Member/Award Presenter Camilo Patrignani, SolarCity Founder/CEO Lyndon Rive, President and Hudson Riverkeeper Paul Gallay

SolarCity recently had the honor of receiving the "Big Fish" award from New York's leading clean water advocate, Riverkeeper, for its transformative impact on the movement to protect our planet's natural resources. As a solar energy provider, SolarCity is making it easy for people to become their own power generators - putting energy into the hands of every American. This pushes back against an energy system governed by the few and "democratizes the power system," Riverkeeper's Chief Prosecuting Attorney Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said at the Fishermen's Ball.

Founded nearly 50 years ago by a concerned group of fishermen who saw their water quality declining due to pollution, Riverkeeper is fighting on the front lines to ban the shipment of crude oil in risky rail cars, leading the fight against fracking, and daring to imagine a future without the nuclear power plant, Indian Point. While the organization's work is far-reaching, it all comes back to one precious resource: the Hudson River.  As a source of drinking water for nearly 250,000 people and a backup source of drinking water for nearly 9 million New Yorkers, the Hudson is a biologically rich ecosystem - a spawning and breeding ground for fish and other wildlife. People flock to the river for kayaking, sailing and fishing. And on hot summer days, the Hudson serves as a 160-mile-long beach.

If people want to continue to enjoy and use the Hudson as a resource, the critical habitats and public access points need to be protected. And the watchdogs at Riverkeeper need the help of industry and private citizens to ensure the robust viability of this precious resource.

It's time to factor water conservation into decisions on energy and electricity - renewable energy sources are not only good for the air and climate, they are good for the health of our waterways. According to a Union of Concerned Scientists report, electricity used to power U.S. homes consumes more water than all other household activities combined - more than our faucets, showers, toilets, and lawn sprinklers. That's because nuclear, natural gas and coal use tens of thousands of gallons of water per megawatt hour - in the United States alone, power plants are the single biggest user of water, consuming over 75 trillion gallons per year or roughly 50% of our daily water use.

How much water does solar power use?  None.

As we continue to rely so predominantly on fossil fuels and nuclear power to generate electricity, we continue to waste water resources that will only become more precious with time. Reducing our reliance on water intensive power plants is within reach thanks to solar. The transition to clean energy benefits fish and other aquatic life. It will also free up scarce water resources for habitat protection, drinking water and recreation, ultimately contributing to more vital communities.

Let's take action, and support Riverkeeper in its mission to protect one our nation's greatest resources.  Let's save water by going solar.

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