Solar panels for council’s buildings

Weymouth Town Council is making efforts to be greener by installing solar panels on three of its buildings in the town. The authority has installed 54 solar photovoltaic panels at the Lodmoor toilet building, the Beach Office building and toilets and at the Swannery toilet building.

Working with Wessex EcoEnergy to install the panels, the council is using computer software to remotely monitor energy consumption and production at the buildings. In their first three months of use, the panels at the Swannery have produced 780Kwh of electricity, meaning it has prevented the production 150.3kg of carbon dioxide through burning fossil fuels. The carbon dioxide offset is the equivalent of planting nine trees, according to the council’s software.

Cllr David Harris, the authority’s spokesperson on the climate emergency, said: “After completing the installation of solar panels on the Swannery toilets three months ago, and despite the inclement winter weather, they have proved to be a great success.

“It’s generated 780Kwh of electricity and saved 150.3kg CO2, compared to grid electricity. So far this has saved £312 in energy costs in their first few months. We look forward to seeing how much more can be saved next season once the days start getting longer.”

Weymouth Town Council has set itself a target of being a ‘net zero carbon’ organisation by 2030.