The sun is our most abundant form of energy, something we have been very slow to take advantage of. More sunlight energy reaches the earth in an hour than is used by the entire population in a year and the technology to harvest this energy is now here.
Photovoltaic systems generate electricity while Solar thermal systems provide hot water. Both lower your bills from the moment they're installed and both reduce your dependency on energy companies (and the prices they decide to charge). If you've got a big enough roof space for both sets of panels you can relax in a hot bath thinking of the next cheque from your energy suplier.
A combined PV and solar thermal system can cut your CO2 output by over a tonne - a useful start on the average footprint of 10 tonnes per person.
With payback periods as short as ten years, the money you save on your energy bills is far greater than the interest a bank would pay you if invested the cost of a system in a savings account.
