Solar PV Array at War Memorial Stadium Lot

A new solar photovoltaic (PV) array recently was installed at the Ford Lot at the University of Wyoming’s War Memorial Stadium.

The 51 kilowatt (kw) installation updates a 35kw array originally installed at the site in 1996 through a state of Wyoming institutional conservation grant. Most of the electricity produced by the array goes to power the UW Indoor Practice Facility, and serves to avoid an estimated 51.7 tons of carbon dioxide per year, according to a Rocky Mountain Power estimate.

The project was made possible through a $76,200 Blue Sky Community Fund Award, provided by Rocky Mountain Power Blue Sky customers. The award was presented to UW through a partnership of the Campus Sustainability Committee, Ruckelshaus Institute of Environment and Natural Resources and the UW Physical Plant.

“Renewable energy projects like this one are a great way for the university to save money, especially at a time when budgets are tight,” says Nicole Korfanta, associate director of the Ruckelshaus Institute of Environment and Natural Resources. “The grant from the Blue Sky program helped defray some of the up-front costs and allows us to start saving right away.”

Korfanta says students will benefit from the installation as a teaching tool. The Haub School of Environment and Natural Resources began offering a sustainability minor, and the project will be incorporated into the curriculum.

UW has two other installations previously funded by Blue Sky -- a 6kw system at the Ruckelshaus Institute’s Bim Kendall House building in Laramie, and another 6kw installation that combines wind and solar technology at its Natrona County Cooperative Extension Office in Casper.

Rocky Mountain Power's voluntary Blue Sky Renewable Energy Program provides customers with the option to help support renewable energy in the western region.