MNN - Mother Nature Network

Pennsylvania’s Pocono Raceway, home to the Sunoco Red Cross Pennsylvania 500 and a variety of other motor sports events, is preparing for a 25-acre solar farm. The massive solar farm, which will house nearly 40,000 photovoltaic panels, is just one of the many eco-friendly upgrades that the park has underway.

 

The groundbreaking ceremony for the 3.0 megawatt solar array was held last week, just prior to the start of the Sunoco Red Cross Pennsylvania 500. “The new solar panel system will become the primary electric energy source for the race track and will also benefit the local power grid. With the deregulation of Pennsylvania’s electric utility laws allowing more flexibility on power purchases, the track found there is no better time to upgrade their facility.“ Source: Pocono Raceway

 

This massive solar array will completely offset the facility’s annual power consumption. The 25-acre solar farm will do more than simply meet 100 percent of the facility’s power requirements; it will also provide enough additional power to provide energy to nearly 1,000 residences.

 

The solar farm isn’t the only environmentally conscious change that the track’s owners are making. Pocono Raceway will install more recycling bins onsite, work with Waste Management to increase its recycling and reduce its contribution to landfills, and plant trees as part of NASCAR’s Green Flag Initiative.

 

Although the solar array groundbreaking ceremony was just held, the project should be completed sometime in the spring of 2010.

 

 

See also:

• NASCAR and the environment