In late October 2015, an underground natural gas storage facility near Los Angeles began leaking gas, polluting the surrounding area with vast amounts of methane -- a greenhouse gas that has a global warming potential far greater than even carbon dioxide.

Thousands of families have been relocated. Local schools have had to close. Porter Ranch residents have reported headaches, nausea, and nosebleeds. Meanwhile, as the leak persists, much of California's efforts to combat climate change are being undone. According to the California Air Resources Board, each month the gas leak continues is equivalent to putting 200,000 more cars on the road for a year.

Aerial view of the Aliso Canyon gas leak near Porter Ranch, two months after the incident began. (Photo Credit: Earthworks, via Wikimedia Commons)

That the Porter Ranch incident is being compared to other infamous fuel spills, including the notorious BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, is no surprise. While fossil fuels have long powered our cities and towns, they have also often been responsible for dangerous and tragic side effects - coal mining accidents, oil train explosions, and gas leaks, not to mention persistent pollution each day that harms communities and warms the planet.

The 30-second YouTube video below, from our new 'How Energy Gets to You' series, highlights the stark contrast between obtaining energy from natural gas and obtaining energy directly from the sun.

It's not hard to see that solar energy wins when it comes to simplicity, safety, and being better for the environment. Moreover, it's increasingly become an economically superior choice for many homes and businesses, as well as for the power grid as a whole. In contrast to conventional power generation (which requires constant inputs of costly fuel), once a solar system is installed, it produces power by simply harnessing sunlight, an energy source available to everyone, with no environmental cost.

All things considered, making electricity with solar panels entails 91% less global warming pollution than using natural gas, and 96% less than coal. And in regions like the drought-stricken West, solar's minimal water impact carries an additional benefit. Solar panel technology uses a trivial amount of the water (as little as 1/200) used at a typical power plant.

The Porter Ranch gas leak is a tragedy, one which brings into focus the full impacts of our energy sources and consumption. How many more similar events will we have to endure until we realize that there's a better way?

Check out all the videos in our'How Energy Gets to You' series on YouTube.

SolarCity Corporation issued this content on 05 February 2016 and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed by Public, unedited and unaltered, on 05 February 2016 17:33:27 UTC

Original Document: http://blog.solarcity.com/solar-no-methane-leak