Back in October, Walt Disney Resorts announced that they would be launching a massive 270-acre facility of nothing but solar panels in an effort to make better use of renewable energy and go green. By October 2018, they already had the first half a million panels installed at the facility.
On Wednesday, the facility went live in full.
The project has been completed by Walt Disney Resorts in collaboration with Reedy Creek Improvement District and Origis Energy USA, according to Attractions Magazine .
Calculations indicate that the massive facility should be big enough to power at least two of the four Walt Disney theme parks in the country each year. That renewable energy usage will make the parks much more environmentally friendly and drastically cut down on the greenhouse gas emissions the franchise is currently giving off.
The initiative comes from a goal the company set in 2012 to reduce its corporate emissions by 50 percent by 2020, meaning that this solar facility has been put online just in time to reach that milestone.
Disney previously installed a 22-acre solar-powered facility, which, of course, was in the shape of Mickey Mouse. Despite that good initiative, it created just 10 percent of the power that the new facility will generate.
A massive new 270-acre, 50-megawatt solar facility is officially online and providing renewable clean energy to Walt Disney World Resort! Details: https://t.co/BDYYcDhoGJ pic.twitter.com/evQ8JrzlXi
— Disney Parks (@DisneyParks) February 20, 2019
The new facility has been built in Florida, which makes perfect sense given that it is, after all, the Sunshine State and so the best place to build a 270-acre facility of solar panels. It will also generate 50-megawatts of power, and the two parks in central Florida will be the ones to benefit from it.
“Environmental stewardship and conservation were ingrained in The Walt Disney Company from the beginning,” Angie Renner told Forbes .
Part of the reason that the Walt Disney Company has decided to go green is that they have noticed that climate change is having a negative effect on “the comfort and health and well being of [the resort’s] customers.” Aside from that, bring eco-friendly is very “in” these days, and could even help the resorts draw in more visitors in the long run.
Founder Walt Disney himself was also a proud advocate for being environmentally friendly, and Renner added that the company wanted to hold true to his legacy on that regard.
“Walt’s legacy of caring for the environment is really dear to our heart, and we’re always looking for ways to use resources wisely and protect the planet – it’s part of who we are.”
