This College Now Runs On 100% Solar Energy

In the move towards running on solar power, more businesses and residential homes are exploring how to make green energy work for them. Colleges and universities are getting on board, too. Recently, for example, Hampshire College became the first residential college in the United States to run on 100 percent solar electricity. 

Located in western Massachusetts, Hampshire College has a population of about 1,400 students. 

Their solar power system has 15,000 panels. Interestingly, it will produce about 4.7 megawatts of power in a year's time, which is actually more than the college uses. 

“We’re hooked up to the grid, so in the dark of night, in the middle of winter, there is still power flowing to all our students' devices, but on a July day we'll produce a lot more power than we'll use,” Jonathan Lash, Hampshire’s president, explained to PRI.

As PRI reports, Hampshire has a rich history of being eco-focused, so it's no surprise to learn that they're the first in the country to accomplish this feat. 

Hampshire students, too, are passionate about the panels. According to Lash, the students selected open agricultural land for the solar panels, thus making it easy to avoid cutting down trees. Even better, students are conducting their own research, along with a professor, to track whether or not installing the solar panels will have a long-term impact on the land. 

Read more here.