Wales’ national coal mining museum is looking to a clean future with its solar panel installation, which will help to preserve the country’s past.
Part of Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales – Big Pit is one of Wales’ largest tourist attractions. Rather than just consisting of exhibits, it’s based on a real coal mine, complete with tours deep underground.
The museum has installed 200 solar panels on the roof of the Big Pit museum building in Blaenafon, South Wales. Another 200 panels have been installed on the rooftop of the National Collection Centre in Nantgarw.
The Museum expects to generate around 5 million kilowatt-hours of clean electricity over 25 years; while avoiding 44,813kg of carbon dioxide emissions annually. What electricity isn’t directly consumed by the Museum will be exported into the mains grid; generating some revenue for the facility.
“Coal is such an important part of Wales’ heritage and yet green energy will play a major part in its future,” said Peter Walker, Museum Manager at Big Pit.
Craig Anderson, Projects Director at Warm Wales Cymru Gynnes commented; “In bringing together a major contributor to our Welsh heritage with new technology, here at Big Pit, we’re demonstrating to all that even the most traditional of industries can gain substantial benefits through integrating the old and the new.”
Coal mining in Wales is believed to have been practised even as early as Roman times.
The Big Pit opened in 1860; producing coal until 1980. At its peak in 1923, it employed 1,399.
According to Wikipedia, it is one of only two remaining mines where visitors can journey to the underground workings around 90 metres below the surface using the same cages that transported the miners. In 2005, the Big Pit National Coal Museum won the prestigious Gulbenkian Prize for museum of the year.
