More than 3% of the total power used by the Anheuser-Busch brewery is generated from solar panels erected on six acres of brewery property. These are installed and operated by SunEdison. It was last year when the brewery came into terms with SunEdison.
This is not the only green project Anheuser-Busch is undertaking. Last year the brewery constructed a Bio-Energy Recovery System, or BERS, that provides around 15% of the brewery’s fuel requirements. The BERS converts wastewater into renewable biogas. This decreases the brewery’s dependency on natural gas.
Conservation and efficiency are always on this brewer’s mind. There’s an ongoing project in the Fairfield brewery to use steam to heat water in the brewhouse. This can reduce greenhouse gas in the atmosphere. Due to its energy conservation and alternative fuel usage, the plant has already reduced its fuel consumption by 38%, electricity by 14%, and water by 32%.
These acts are not left unnoticed. State Senator Lois Wolk has this to say about the company:
Anheuser-Busch has been a good neighbor to Fairfield and the surrounding communities for more than 30 years. They have earned their reputation as not only a top employer in the area, but as a business doing the right thing for the environment, even before it was popular.
Its waste management is something that most companies should emulate. The brewery recycles 99 percent of their solid waste, such as aluminum, metal, cardboard, glass, brewing grain, wood, beech wood chips, labels, stretch wraps, batteries and electronic equipments. In 2008 alone, the brewery has recycled around 200 million pounds of materials.
Back on the subject of the solar panels, these can generate around 1.2 megawatts of power. As part of their agreement, SunEdison financed, installed, and operates the solar panels. The brewery is still pondering whether they should install more solar arrays and wind turbines on their property.
Being a member of the U.S. EPA Climate Leaders Program, Anheuser-Busch has committed to lessen their greenhouse gas emissions to 5%, by the year 2010. It’s not just with their Fairfield brewery, but the target is company-wide.
Hopefully other companies that own large unused parcels of land should follow suit. Companies should be environmentally conscious and should not think of profit all the time. Anheuser-Busch not only makes good beer, but they serve as good role models for others out there.
For more information about their Fairfield Solar Array project, see the article here.
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