Golf was once a very popular sport in Japan. But in the last few years, this leisurely sport has seen a decline in popularity. Many of Japan’s golf courses lie abandoned in all corners of the country.
The island nation has found a smart solution by recycling these abandoned golf courses. The country is turning these abandoned green spaces into solar power plants.
The solution is perfectly suited for Japan, which has been looking to boost its renewable energy production as an alternative to nuclear energy after the 2011 Fukushima disaster.
Japan’s electronics giant Kyocera is constructing a 23 MW solar plant on an abandoned golf course in Kyoto prefecture. It will generate 26,000 MWh per year, enough to power about 8,100 households. This solar farm is expected to go live in 2017.
Kyocera is also developing a much larger 92 MW solar power plant on an abandoned golf course in Kagoshima prefecture.
