So you’ve decided to go solar? Wonderful! You’re starting off on a path that will lower your energy bills along with your carbon footprint. But before you choose a company to install panels, you need to make sure they use ethically sourced solar panels. We’re here to explain how to pick your solar energy provider so that you don’t have to worry about things like “are solar panels ethical?” You’ll know that while you’re saving the planet, you’re not harming your fellow humans.

How much do ethically sourced solar panels cost? The cash price might be a little higher but the cost of someone’s well being is worth it. Renewable resources should be great for the environment as well as for the people who live and work in that environment. Reports of human rights violations in Xinjiang, China have caused sanctions to be brought down on them. The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) has asked the solar industry to step up. Not only should we say we don’t condone forced labor, we should actively work against it.

Solar companies should have a solid answer ready when people ask, “is solar energy ethical”. We should move our supply chain outside of Xinjiang. At Arcadia Solar, we made sure to switch when we learned about these questionable practices. We found that panels built in China with blue cells on them were the product of human rights violations, so as a socially responsible company, we changed which panels we install.

SEIA has been working hard to ensure that all solar components are sourced ethically. We can all do our part to help. With a little research, you can make sure that whatever solar company you go with as your installer uses panels that are free of unethical labor practices. We want our customers to feel confident that their solar system purchase is both sustainable and humanitarian.

The White House and the Commerce Department have recently added Hoshine Silicon and four other Xinjiang companies to a list that prohibits U.S. companies from doing business with them. While this might disrupt the solar industry considering around 40% of the world’s polysilicon comes from this region, this key component of solar panels can still be found elsewhere. It may cost more, considering the Xinjiang companies were able to benefit from advantages such as forced labor, government subsidies, and cheap energy from coal plants. But now, we can forge a new path.

When you power your lifestyle with renewable resources, you are choosing to help both the environment and your community. If you’re that forward-thinking, you probably don’t want to harm another community. Choosing a solar installer like Arcadia Solar allows you to have a positive effect that you don’t have to worry about the consequences of.

Your money should support the causes you believe in. So when you’re choosing which businesses you want to work with, make sure they have the same high standard of ethics as you do.