Gloucester Cathedral, a building famous for hosting the Coronation of King Henry III, being the final resting place of King Edward II, and, more recently, appearing in three Harry Potter films and an episode of Sherlock, is set to become the oldest cathedral in the UK to install a commercial sized solar PV system on its roof.
Thanks to money from the Heritage Lottery Fund, Gloucester Cathedral is about to undergo a £6million development project with the installation of solar PV front and center. Mypower, a Gloucestershire-based company, was awarded the contract to add 150 solar panels to the roof of the Cathedral. Specifically, the panels will be added to the 30-meter high Nave roof, which was built almost 1,000 years ago, and will be impossible to see from the surrounding area.
The Church of England’s Shrinking the Footprint campaign wants to reduce its carbon emissions by 80% by 2050. The Cathedral’s new 42kW solar array will contribute to the overall goal of the Church of England by reducing energy costs by 25% for the historic structure.
There are some significant shading issues, however, due to the Cathedral’s design. Mypower used animated graphics to demonstrate the shading at different times of the day and year in order to find the right balance between capital cost and electricity yield.
In early October, Mypower will begin installing the panels with commissioning following four weeks later.
Related Stories
| Oct 5, 2011
GREENBUILD 2011: Roof hatch designed for energy efficiency
The cover features a specially designed EPDM finger-type gasket that ensures a positive seal with the curb to reduce air permeability and ensure energy performance.
| Sep 28, 2011
GBCI announces LEED fellow class of 2011
LEED Fellows represent green building industry's most accomplished professionals.
| Sep 14, 2011
Empire State Building achieves LEED Gold ?
The 2.85 million-sf building is celebrating its 80th anniversary while nearing completion of its renewal and repurposing to meet the needs of 21st Century businesses.
| Sep 12, 2011
Construction waste management
Best practices for an environmentally optimized job site.
| May 25, 2011
Low Impact Development: Managing Stormwater Runoff
Earn 1.0 AIA/CES HSW/SD learning units by studying this article and successfully passing the online exam.
| May 25, 2011
Smithsonian building $45 million green lab
Thanks to a $45 million federal appropriation to the Smithsonian Institution, the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center in Edgewater, Md., has broken ground on what is expected to be one of the most energy-efficient laboratories in the country. The 69,000-sf lab is targeting LEED Gold and is expected to use 37% less energy and emit 37% less carbon dioxide than a similar building.
| May 20, 2011
Chicago leads the nation in LEED-certified square footage
The U.S. Green Building Council reports that Chicago has the highest number of square feet of LEED-certified green building projects nationally with 71 million square feet.
| May 18, 2011
Eco-friendly San Antonio school combines history and sustainability
The 113,000-sf Rolling Meadows Elementary School in San Antonio is the Judson Independent School District’s first sustainable facility, with green features such as vented roofs for rainwater collection and regionally sourced materials.
| May 16, 2011
USGBC and AIA unveil report for greening K-12 schools
The U.S. Green Building Council and the American Institute of Architects unveiled "Local Leaders in Sustainability: A Special Report from Sundance," which outlines a five-point national action plan that mayors and local leaders can use as a framework to develop and implement green schools initiatives.