It’s a good time to be green, and Google is leading the way. Last year, the search giant Google announced that their installation of the solar panels on their campus, which are expected to provide around 1,600 kw/h. And keeping with their green commitment, they recently launched the Google solar panel project webpage which will help anyone track how much power their solar panels are generating. And now, their newest green initiatives include everything from plug-in hybrids and car-powered homes to carbon neutrality.
For most companies, the installation of solar panels on their offices would be enough- after all, they are getting gobs of publicity from the installation along with worldwide corporate green credibility. Not for Google though, who is trying to green the world, one initiative at a time. At the same time that they announced their solar webpage, USA Today announced that Google was putting 10 million dollars to the development of plug-in hybrids, and to the creation of a system similar to the one developed by PG&E, previously featured at Inhabitat, to power your home with your car. Might not seem like much, until you compare it to the 28 million that the federal government will be giving to the same cause.
And to top it off, Google has just announced that it expects to become carbon neutral by 2007. They will do this via a mixture of energy consumption reduction, carbon offsets, and use of renewable resources. They will also be submitting themselves to an independent audit to make sure that they meet this goal every year.
It’s great to see such a hugely impactive company taking proactive responsibility for their actions. Google saw the need to address climate change as one of their core missions, and they certainly seem to be moving towards that goal.