This unique book offers an introduction to the development of renewable energy in Australia in
the early 2000s. Examining the rise of dispersed embedded solar energy systems in Western
Australia it looks specifically at the Solex project in Carnarvon WA which pioneered the
harvest of solar energy from what was once considered the pursuit of the lunatic fringes of
society to a viable energy source for mainstream society and industry. In this fascinating case
study Fullarton shows how a practical demonstration of innovative existing technology can have
an incredible impact on a national scale. The ideas behind the Solex project slowly became
adopted by the broader community and were eventually taken up enthusiastically by the general
population of Australia. Analyzing government and utility policies throughout the 2000s the
book traces how ambivalence was followed by wholehearted incentives to the roll-out of
alternative energy and subsequent active opposition to alternative energy in favor of
traditional fossil fuel as government philosophies changed.
