With the opening ceremonies underway in London at the 2012 Olympic Games, the world will be watching elite athletes competing over the next several weeks.
While the focus will be – rightly so – on the competitors and the pageantry, those that are interested in saving energy and money will be excited to learn that solar stadiums are generating clean, free solar power at the 2012 Olympic Games.
The 2012 Olympic Games in London
The Olympic Park at Stratford is aiming to slash its carbon footprint in half with solar panels and other sustainability measures at the London 2012 Energy Centre, Olympic pavillion, and the Main Press Centre. We have previously blogged about solar powered sports stadiums, but there is no other sporting event that gets the attention and press of the Olympics.
After the conclusion of the Games, the solar panels on the Main Press Centre will be moved to the roof of an adjacent parking garage. There, the panels will continue generating solar power that will be fed into the city’s grid. Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) Chief Executive Dennis Hone commented that the sustainability measures at Olympic Park are “a showcase of innovation and careful planning.”
We think this is great news for a number of reasons. First, many people consider solar panels for homes, but forget that they can be used on a much larger scale for corporations and events. Second, with the world watching the 2012 Olympic Games, broad-based exposure for solar power will result.
