Coal power is a dinosaur. And there's no better proof that the energy source is outmoded than this: a coal museum in Britain is now getting its power from 400 solar panels that were recently installed on its rooftops. Yes, an institution dedicated to celebrating coal-fired electricity runs on solar. The times, as they say, are a-changing.
Renewable Energy World has the details:
Wales’ National Coal Mining Museum located at Big Pit, Blaenavon, Nr Abergavenny in south Wales, now has 200 photovoltaic solar panels erected on the Big Pit museum’s roof with another 200 solar panels installed on the National Collection Centre in Nantgarw ... It is estimated that the solar panels will offset about £400,000 [$650,000] during the next 25 years.
The panels cost £70,000 ($113,000) to put up, making this a remarkably sound investment. They're expected to generate a surplus of power, too, and the museum will sell the surfeit to the national grid.
Now, we've had hybrid coal-solar power plants, but it seems that never before have we stumbled upon a helping of irony so great–the solar-powered coal museum.
The management of the museum just sees the whole thing as good sense, however. Peter Walker, Big Pit's manager, told REW that “Coal is such an important part of Wales’ heritage and yet green energy will play a major part in its future. A solar powered coal-mining museum is a fantastic way to celebrate this national journey. But it’s far from just symbolic — the museum will benefit from huge reductions in energy bills and a solid return from the feed-in tariff.”
See, in Britain, they recognize that coal should be a historical footnote by now. Coal plants should be replaced by clean energy about now, in the interest of preventing climate change and spewing pollutants all over human civilization. Phillip Bump quips at Grist, "The coal industry has been made into a museum exhibition. See how life used to be, kids, in the terrible times of yesteryear."
Exactly. Now what say we get some of these museums up and running in the U.S.