Australian outback is one of the harshest environments on the planet and the sunlight intensity there could give you some serious problems if you are not protected the way you should be. But there is an advantage in all that and that is the amazing potential one has to cap all that solar energy and use it to produce power and get our electronic nonsense working for us. Carbon Neutral Tourism is something that I first came across in New Zealand to preserve the countries beautiful landscape and it seems it has now got to its trans-Tasmanian rivals!
Hidden Valley Cabins is Australia’s first carbon neutral resort and tour company. The solar powered getaway is located one and half hours northwest of Townsville, near Running River on the western slope of the Paluma range in Queensland, Australia. This is Australia’s first stand-alone resort that operates solely on solar power, and saves 78 tons of CO2 emissions per year! A stand alone solar system has been installed to run the entire resort 24X7. The system includes 12 KVA inverter, 90 x 130 watt solar panels delivering 120 volts DC into 60 x 2 volt 1660 amp batteries.
The other environment-friendly ideas put to work at the resort include use of compact fluorescent bulbs, turning off all major electrical appliances in the bar and entertainment area at night; waste minimization by composting food and paper products (to be used for gardens); recycling aluminum cans, paper, etc; and educating tourists about the importance of being environment-friendly, power conservation, species conservation, renewable energy, etc etc. That was a long list… Phew! Even the entire structure is made out of local timber and not steel. Seems like here is one cool resort in the scorching hot outback!
