Monday, April 27, 2015

Israel installs record-setting solar field on Knesset roof

From Israel Hayom

Israel has installed solar panels on the roof of its parliament building, creating what it calls the largest solar field of any national assembly in the world.

The office of the parliament speaker says energy generated from some 1,500 solar panels will provide 10% of the electricity used at the Knesset, Israel's parliament, and saving approximately $400,000 annually.

"We have here 4,600 square meters [1.1 acres] of photovoltaic panels and this makes the Knesset the greenest parliament in the world and it's part of an amazing, extremely exciting project called Green Knesset that contains altogether 13 projects of making the Knesset more friendly to the environment," said Knesset spokesperson Yotam Yakir.

The array of solar panels, according to a Knesset press release, provides a capacity of 450 kilowatts.

The Knesset is also advancing other energy-saving projects, like installing energy-saving light bulbs, automatically shutting down lawmakers' computers at the end of each workday, and using water from air conditioning systems to help irrigate the gardens surrounding the building.

The statement says the measures will reduce the Knesset's energy use by a third.

Scientists will also conduct ecological research on the parliament roof.

The Knesset unveiled the solar field in a dedication ceremony on Sunday.

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