A rendering of the solar project – credit City of Valencia
Today’s good news comes from the Good News Network
Three Valencia Cemeteries to Play Host to Largest Urban Solar Farm in Spain
Another European city has taken up the idea of utilizing the space over its cemeteries for generating solar power, a project it calls Requiem in Power, or RIP.
In the heart of Valencia, three cemeteries, Grau, Campanar, and Benimàmet, will be outfitted with 7,000 panels to create the largest urban solar farm in Spain.
GNN reported in March that a town on the River Loire in France had initiated a community-led project to raise solar panel canopies to stop excess rainwater from flooding the sea-level town cemetery.
The town, Saint-Joachim, had to raise the money for the project through voluntary taxation and seek permission from residents, which wasn’t a problem for former Valencia city climate councilor Alejandro Ramon, who explained that the city owns the cemetery land and can do as it likes.
But to ensure they weren’t walking over anyone’s graves, they sought permission from the Catholic Diocese, which supported the idea.
“We suffer droughts and extreme heat. It’s necessary to speed up the transition, but sometimes in cities, it’s difficult to find large free spaces to install renewable energy,” Ramon told Adele Peters at Fast Company. “After consulting with technicians, they told me that the roofs of the niches were perfectly suitable for installing solar panels.”
The niches that Ramon refers to are those above the mausoleums.
As Ramon said, in an effort to speed up the transition, Europeans are coming up with increasingly inventive ways to install solar panels, including inside the terracotta roof tiles typical of a historic Italian or Greek roof or on over 100,000 balconies and terraces in Germany.
One benefit of a solar farm right in the heart of the city, as those above the cemeteries will provide, is that wattage isn’t lost through the transfer of power from the countryside into the city on long power lines.
Far less additional transfer infrastructure needs to be built, and residents can be inspired knowing that their ancestors are still contributing years after their deaths.
The good news in this story is communities are continuing to find new ways to generate power. Today’s JohnKu talks about innovation. I hope you have a wonderful weekend.
New by John W. Howell © 2024
The old ways make room,
For the new methods needed . . .
To sustain our life.
Fiction Favorites 
That’s really cool. Wonder of similar projects will happen around the States.
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They should but folks get a little squeamish about disturbing the dead so I don’t see it for a while.
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Not even cemeteries. Just solar power in general. Though, I guess there used to be a threat of electric zombies due to the cables.
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They are everywhere.
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I know exactly the song they could use in their marketing campaigns: “You Light Up My Life.”
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Good one, Linda. 😁
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What a wonderful use of the land! Would love to see this happen here in the U.S.
Thanks for sharing, John.
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I would too, Karen. 😁
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Dear John
what a great idea!
The Fab Four of Cley
🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂
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I think so too. I hope you have a great weekend F4oC
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Thank you
🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂
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😊
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This is a cool idea. It’s getting close to some Ideas I wrote into a tale once.
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I am not surprised. Your tales are predictive. 😊
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Wonderful ingenuity! In our area, solar panels are over parking lots – at schools and businesses, but I haven’t seen them over cemeteries. Thank you for sharing this hopeful post, John. Good news is desperately needed these days. 😊
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I agree, Gwen. It seems bad news is all anyone can share these days. Very interesting information about the solar panels.
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It’s a good idea that we should adopt more readily.
Happy Flag Day, John.
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Happy Flag Day to you, GP. I agree it is a great idea.
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I love this idea! Absolutely love it!!
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I do too.
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We’re seeing them in interesting places around here, but no cemeteries yet. It’s good to put them in places that have sun and lots of free room.
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Most cemeteries are like that. 😁
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Fantastic idea and a productive use of space. Have a great weekend, John!
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Thank you, Teri. I hope you have a good one as well.
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What a wonderful idea. We get so much sun in Spain, why not use it’s power. Our community has just installed solar panels.
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Sounds great, Darlene. 😁
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That is logical, and the results should be positive.
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I think so too, Tim. Thank you. I hope you have a super weekend.
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What a great way to utilize cemetery ground space. Thanks for sharing, John!
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I agree, Jan. Thanks for reading.
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Wonderful news and love your haiku so hopeful, John💓
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Thank you, Cindy. Fridays are for hope.
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You’re welcome and yes , they are John and don’t forget fun.. 😉💕
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Oh yes fun. 😁
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😘
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That’s cool that they’re installing solar panels inside terracotta roof tiles. Talk about innovation while maintaining aesthetics! Thanks for sharing the good news, John. 🙂
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Thanks for the visit, Diana.
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Fascinating project, John — thanks for sharing the news!
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Yes it is. Thanks, Debbie.
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Beats the heck out of windmills. I hate those things !
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I do too. So unsightly. Congrats on the comment. 😁
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How ingenious! And a way for the dead to keep on giving. I’m all for it.
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Yup. Does put the ground to good use,
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Now that is a brilliant idea. Thank you for sharing, John.
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I thought so too.
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You share good schtuffs!
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Thank you, Dale. I try. 😊
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You succeed! 😊
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It is great news, John.
Yes, it will change the “look” of the landscape, but it won’t take the old landscape away.
We need to solve problems, and this is one answer.
Who knows? In the future there may be another mode of collecting energy from the sun? Perhaps a thin single rod will collect more energy than a thousand solar panels, or something completely unthought of will be discovered.
At that point the OLD solar panels can be removed, and people can rediscover…or even just discover what it used to look like.
Thanks for the JohnKu! It’s right on.
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Thank you, Risa. Your look to the future was refreshing. 🐂
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Yay!
🐂🐂
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😊 🐂🐂🐂🐂
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😊 🐂🐂🐂🐂 😊
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😊😊 🐂🐂🐂🐂 🐂🐂🐂🐂😊😊
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Smiling because I’ve run out of corral space, eh?
I have no option but to combine the many oxen into 1 giant OX who can sleep in the back yard.
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Love this, Resa 🤣X
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That’s pretty cool.
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Thanks, Deborah.
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You’re welcome, John!
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😊
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Solar farms take up quite a bit of space and finding places for them is difficult, especially because of NIMBY, no one wants them in their backyard or in their neighborhood. Getting permits and judicial approval for solar farms take a lot longer than building them. Another idea is to put solar panels on top of the roofs of large commercial buildings and storage facilities.
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I always like the idea of roof top solar panels. Thanks, Thomas.
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Good news, indeed! I mostly see solar panels in unused fields. A much better use of the land than more subivisions.
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I agree. Would be a good use of the resource.
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Wow, that’s so very cool and innovative! I hope something like that will be forthcoming here in the States. Thanks for sharing a very inspiring story this week.
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I hope so too, Monika. Thanks.
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Ingenious! A wonderful weekend to you too. Thanks for the interesting, good news!
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😊
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Ingenuity both outside the box and inside of it. Both. This kind of thing needs the synergy of various agencies and interests to gain traction though, and it’s always inspiring when you read stories like this and realize that yes, it IS possible.
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I like the idea that it is possible.
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You and me both.
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😁
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Perfect JohnKu for this wonderful project.
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😁
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It makes absolute sense and makes best use of the land. It is not disturbing the dead it is in a way honouring them… great share John.. hugsx
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I agree, Sally. I wish we could see it done here.
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That’s fantastic. I hope it catches on in more countries. 🙂
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I do too.
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🙂
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[…] Discover more about this interesting programme: John Howell’s Good News […]
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Thank you, Sally. It is wonderful to be here with these other talented bloggers.
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Well…solar energy is the future…but we must respect the dead, dear John. 🤔🤔🤔🍻🍤🍤🍤
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My solution would be to ask them if they mind. Silence would indicate they didn’t mind
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