Solar power isn’t one of the first things to spring to mind in relation to NASCAR racing, but a major solar farm constructed at Pocono raceway in Pennsylvania will make a major dent in the facility’s greenhouse gas emissions and perhaps encourage other raceways to do the same.
The 3 MW solar farm is made up of 40,000 solar panels, making it the largest solar-powered sports stadium in the world and more than double the size of the second-biggest solar-powered sports facility, a stadium in Taiwan that generates about 1.2 megawatts.
The Pocono raceway solar farm will generate enough electricity to power the NASCAR facility as well as about 1,000 homes in the surrounding area – an estimated 3.8 million kilowatt-hours a year.
The USD $15 million solar farm is expected to pay for itself in four to five years, through mains grid supplied electricity savings and the additional electricity exported to the mains grid that will earn the raceway credits from the local power company.
NASCAR representatives hope other race tracks in NASCAR take note of what Pocono is doing and consider following suit. With NASCAR racing being hugely popular in the USA, the solar farm will also help build awareness among race-goers in regard to renewable energy.
While NASCAR will likely never be a “green” sport, it is making efforts to reduce its environmental impact. The solar farm is a part of NASCAR’s green initiative, adding to recycling and carbon-offset projects the series already has in place.
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