Solar Powered Billboard Advertizes itself
Renewable energy steps into the field of advertising with the renewable energy powered billboard. A step by by Lamar Advertising Co. aims to refit up to 1,370 billboard with solar and wind generators.
The imitative which will take place in Florida, USA, will see the retrofitting of advertizing billboard with solar energy or wind powered generators that will combines produce around 1 MegaWatt of clean energy. This will help power the signs and any excess will be fed back in to the Floridian electrical grid. The cost of the venture is expected to be around US$12.5 million with the US Department of Energy offering US$2.5 million.
Using these existing structures around the country to generate renewable energy is not as efficient as a suitable placed wind farm or photovoltaic solar plant. The big advantage is that they already exist and replace the need for dedicate wind farms to sprout up spoiling the landscape more. Just like rooftops in homes and businesses can be solar generators and combined produce an enormous amount of energy, utilizing these existing structures helps reduce the demand even more.
For most of us we will not see a direct benefit, the advertisement will still be bombarded down at us as we drive along the roads and highways. For Lamar and other advertising companies their costs will be reduced and we can not fault them for that. For the nation and world it is a small but cumulative reduction do demand for energy and the positive effects.
Many people go green or off the grid for the passion of the ideal. A business, no matter how they wish to portray their causes are driven by cold hard cash. Whenever we see a Business, like here in the case of Lamar, taking up renewable energy then most likely they are saving money. This is something we can take up ourselves and reduce our costs and the plant may eventually thank us.
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