By Robin D’Onofrio

Having worked at Action going on 6 years, it came as no surprise when I was told that one of our offices had gone solar. Action has always been in the forefront of modern change, efficiency, and working lean. Now, added to the list is, going “Green.” When Alan Wright asked me to write a story about this, I got really excited because every little bit of renewable energy will certainly help the planet….but how much can a few solar panels really help save the planet and global warming?…..

The new solar panel system is designed to produce 52,431 KWH annually. The KWH offset over the 30-year life of the system is 1,572,930. But what does that mean? What is the tangible offset? How can one office help save the planet while trying to save money? I would compare to the saying, “’It’s only 1 straw said,’ 8,000,000 people.”

 

 

By using the greenhouse gas equivalencies calculator, I was able to find out exactly what it meant. This calculator helped me translate from abstract to something concrete, or another words, something I could identify with and understand. Here is the positive environmental impact of the solar system at one Action office. This offset is equivalent to: 

 

      Annual     30 years
CO2 Offset       37.2 metric tons     1,115 metric tons
 

Greenhouse Gas Emissions from
Cars drove for 1 year:       8.1 cars     242
Miles drove by average car:       93,383     2,801,482
 

CO2 Emissions from
Gallons of gasoline consumed:       4,181     125,431
Gallons of diesel consumed:       3,650     109,500
Pounds of coal burned:       41,069     1,232,068
Tanker trucks full of fuel:       0.492     14.8
Homes’ energy use 1/yr:       4.5     134
Homes’ electricity use 1/yr:       6.7     202
Barrels of oil consumed:       86     2,581
LP cylinders – home BBQ’s:       1,519     45,569
Smartphones charged:       4,519,867     135,596,022

 

………And the list keeps going. WHAT’S NOT TO LOVE ABOUT THAT! 

That just blows my mind that one business location can have such a positive effect on the planet and global warming! I am so proud to be a part of an organization that cares about our environment!

GO ACTION!!!