The first question is: Why did it take so long?
Sports leagues in the United States say they will encourage professional teams to embrace renewable energy at their stadiums. It's not a mandate, according to this blog item by Todd Woody in Grist, but a push in that direction by professional sports is huge.
After all, professional sports is big business, a catalyst and a trendsetter. There are reasons why cereal and shoe companies pay millions to have sports stars endorse their products.
Consider this: More than 123 million people attended a professional baseball, basketball, hockey or football game in the U.S. and Canada in 2009.
"Frankly, sports matter," Allen Hershkowitz, a senior scientist with the Natural Resources Defense Council, told Grist.
Cities are starting to put solar panels and wind turbines on buildings, bus shelters, parking garages, and power poles. Some stadiums also are going green - The Staples Center has saved $100,000 in power costs by using solar panels and University of Phoenix Stadium in Arizona buys power through a renewable-energy program - but much more can be done.
The San Joaquin Valley Clean Energy Organization is a nonprofit dedicated to improving our region's quality of life by increasing its production and use of clean and alternative energy. The SJVCEO works with cities and counties and public and private organizations to demonstrate the benefits of energy efficiency and renewable energy throughout the eight-county region of the San Joaquin Valley.
Sports leagues in the United States say they will encourage professional teams to embrace renewable energy at their stadiums. It's not a mandate, according to this blog item by Todd Woody in Grist, but a push in that direction by professional sports is huge.
After all, professional sports is big business, a catalyst and a trendsetter. There are reasons why cereal and shoe companies pay millions to have sports stars endorse their products.
Consider this: More than 123 million people attended a professional baseball, basketball, hockey or football game in the U.S. and Canada in 2009.
"Frankly, sports matter," Allen Hershkowitz, a senior scientist with the Natural Resources Defense Council, told Grist.
Cities are starting to put solar panels and wind turbines on buildings, bus shelters, parking garages, and power poles. Some stadiums also are going green - The Staples Center has saved $100,000 in power costs by using solar panels and University of Phoenix Stadium in Arizona buys power through a renewable-energy program - but much more can be done.
The San Joaquin Valley Clean Energy Organization is a nonprofit dedicated to improving our region's quality of life by increasing its production and use of clean and alternative energy. The SJVCEO works with cities and counties and public and private organizations to demonstrate the benefits of energy efficiency and renewable energy throughout the eight-county region of the San Joaquin Valley.
Photo by radisson.com