As used in the Solar Rights Act:

A. "solar collector" means a device, substance or element, or a combination of devices, substances or elements, that relies upon sunshine as an energy source and that is capable of collecting not less than twenty-five thousand British thermal units on a clear winter solstice day or that is used for the conveyance of light to the interior of a building. The term also includes any device, substance or element that collects solar energy for use in:

(1) the heating or cooling of a structure or building;

(2) the heating or pumping of water;

(3) industrial, commercial or agricultural processes; or

(4) the generation of electricity. A solar collector may be used for purposes in addition to the collection of solar energy. These uses include, but are not limited to, serving as a structural member or part of a roof of a building or structure and serving as a window or wall; and

B. "solar right" means a right to an unobstructed line-of-sight path from a solar collector to the sun, which permits radiation from the sun to impinge directly on the solar collector.

History: 1953 Comp., § 70-8-3, enacted by Laws 1977, ch. 169, § 3; 2007, ch. 232, § 3.

The 2007 amendment, effective June 15, 2007, expanded the definition of "solar collector" to include devices that convey light to the interior of a building.

Law reviews. — For note, "Access to Sunlight: New Mexico's Solar Rights Act," see 19 Nat. Res. J. 957 (1979); 10 N.M.L. Rev. 169 (1979-80).