NJ Spotlight

In meetings in Iselin and Trenton today, representatives of the executive and legislative branches will discuss how to correct much-debated problems in New Jersey's solar sector.

But looking at projections by managers of the state's renewable energy program raises a classic question: If it's not broken, why fix it?

By the end of last year, the state will have likely installed more solar systems in one calendar year than in the prior decade, according to Michael Winka, director of the state Office of Clean Energy. As of the end of October, there had been 4,348 solar systems installed for 230 megawatts of capacity this year -- nearly topping the 259 megawatts installed in 8,351 solar system projects over the prior 10 years.