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Enchanted Rock Goes Solar And Is A Model Of Sustainability

Enchanted Rock State Natural Area may be known for its pink granite, but the park is working to become the greenest state park in Texas. The park’s newest addition of solar panels is just the latest in its sustainability efforts.

Enchanted Rock State Natural Area has just installed a solar array to offset half the park’s energy use. They were able to do that because of a $40,000 donation from Green Mountain Energy Sun Club. Andee Chamberlain is sustainability program manager at Texas Parks and Wildlife. She says the solar panels are black and are on the roof and sides of the headquarters building.

"Solar energy is generated from the sun. So the sun’s rays hit the panels and there’s some reactions that happen within the panel and take that sun’s energy and convert it to direct current energy," she says.

That direct energy is what is powering up the lights, air conditioning and computers in the headquarters building at Enchanted Rock. It’s supplying half the energy needed for the building. On days where the park doesn’t use all of the solar power generated, the energy’s transferred to the electric grid where it’s stored.

Chamberlain says Texas Parks and Wildlife has so far installed solar panels in 19 other state parks in addition to Enchanted Rock. But this park, known for the pink rock dome hikers flock to climb, is the leader in sustainability.

"They’ve installed Dark Sky Initiative, so the night sky’s protected, and you’re able to see those beautiful stars," she says. "They’ve installed water bottle refill stations, so if you take your own water bottle, you’ll be able to refill it right there at the water fountain. They have a recycling project going, and now the solar panels, so they’re really closing the loop."

Chamberlain says Enchanted Rock’s comprehensive approach to sustainability may be a model for other state parks in Texas.

Visitors to Enchanted Rock will have the opportunity to learn about how energy is generated from solar power, and how it benefits the earth and the park.

Louisa Jonas is an independent public radio producer, environmental writer, and radio production teacher based in Baltimore. She is thrilled to have been a PRX STEM Story Project recipient for which she produced a piece about periodical cicadas. Her work includes documentaries about spawning horseshoe crabs and migratory shorebirds aired on NPR's Weekend All Things Considered. Louisa previously worked as the podcast producer at WYPR 88.1FM in Baltimore. There she created and produced two documentary podcast series: Natural Maryland and Ascending: Baltimore School for the Arts. The Nature Conservancy selected her documentaries for their podcast Nature Stories. She has also produced for the Chemical Heritage Foundation’s Distillations Podcast. Louisa is editor of the book Backyard Carolina: Two Decades of Public Radio Commentary. She holds an M.F.A. in Creative Writing from University of North Carolina Wilmington. Her training also includes journalism fellowships from the Science Literacy Project and the Knight Digital Media Center, both in Berkeley, CA. Most recently she received a journalism fellowship through Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution where she traveled to Toolik Field Station in Arctic Alaska to study climate change. In addition to her work as an independent producer, she teaches radio production classes at Howard Community College to a great group of budding journalists. She has worked as an environmental educator and canoe instructor but has yet to convince a great blue heron to squawk for her microphone…she remains undeterred.