Spanish City Sets Up Solar Cemetery

A Spanish city has found an unusual place to generate renewable energy — solar panels in the cemetery. Santa Coloma de Gramanet has installed 462 solar panels over its multi-story mausoleums. The plan was met with some derision at first, but thanks to a successful marketing campaign, the solar cemetery has public support. It has been such a success that there are already plans to install more panels in an effort to triple the amount of power generated. The installation cost 720,000 euros (£608,000) but will keep about 62 tonnes of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere every year, said Esteve Serret, a director of Conste-Live Energy, the company that runs the cemetery and also works in renewable energy. I'm sure a solar powered zombie movie is already in the works.

Comments

Aw, c'mon

[Captain Splendid]

I'm sure a solar powered zombie movie is already in the works.

Yeah, but I'm sure they'll figure out a way to incorporate the solar panels into weapons. Zombie BBQ!

Re:Aw, c'mon

[troll8901]

It's called "Zom-Be-Que". In place of sunlight, you can also use pyrotechnic flares, through the sparks don't last long.

I also heard that another cemetery (burial site) is incorporating dynamos for generating clean energy. Not sure how they power the generators, though.

Doubly green

[Roland Piquepaille]

will keep about 62 tonnes of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere every year

And the residents also cut their CO2 footprint by about 2 tons per year, simply by not breathing.

Re:Doubly green

[Jah-Wren Ryel]

This sort of really gets to me, it seems like people can't even do math any more. I have a neighbor who was convinced into buying solar panels because he wouldn't have to pay the utility company again. It turns out that not paying the utility company for electricity again is going to cost him roughly 30% more then if he paid them.

You assume that "not paying the utility company" has zero value to your neighbor. Maybe it doesn't. Maybe he gains personal gratification by being "off the grid" that more than makes up for the 30% premium. After all people buy expensive cars that get them where they are going just as well as a cheap car would - they do it because they get other less tangible benefits from their cars, benefits that they feel are worth paying a premium for. There are probably an infinite number of such examples, it is part of the reason we have markets with a variety of choices rather than single suppliers.

Re:Doubly green

[sumdumass]

No, I didn't assume anything, I talk to the neighbor and he didn't realize how much it would cost until after he started paying for it. He did it because he thought it would be cheaper and found that it wouldn't be when he had to pay for it.

Other people might think the way your described, I have even been known to go further across town and buy something that costs a couple dollars more just to avoid giving money to a store I didn't like for whatever reason. I have even driven 10 miles to get gas at a station selling it for 5 cents cheaper to make the point. However, people doing things for ulterior reasons isn't really the point, the point was that the shit costs so much more then regular energy that they stopped comparing the two and end up measuring it in the costs of emotional issues instead. And as long as it works, expect more and more of it. As long as someone like my neighbor will concentrate on the BS spewed instead of the actual costs, it will always be more then regular energy.

Some might prefer it.

[Filbertish]

I know for a fact that my grandfather who passed away recently would have paid extra to be buried in a cemetery that generates clean energy.

Re:Does it scale?

[Thanshin]

1 - Throw coffin with 6 tiny rockets (N,S,W,E,U,D).
2 - Activate algorithm "every hour activate rocket away from sun for five seconds".
3 - Wait.

How much CO2 was produced making these?

[ZERO1ZERO]

I wonder how much pollution/CO2 was 'pumped in to the atmosphere' when making these panels. Presumably from what I've read on solar panels, it was probably around 620 Tonnes, as the general figure is it takes 10 years to recoup the enegery expended in making these things. How long are these panels expected to last?

Re:How much CO2 was produced making these?

[Anonymous Coward]

most panels last about 30 years at least. then they start to work less and less effectively. but the raw materials can be recycled to save energy.

also new solar panels based on LCD technology can recoup the energy used to make them in 8 months, even in the not always so sunny Germany.
they aren't as efficient as silicon solar panels but they are MUCH MUCH cheaper.

Sounds like

[Chuck Chunder]

a good use of otherwise dead space.