On a sunny day in spring or summer, four solar projects can now produce up to 100% of the daytime power needs of the entire resort – spread across four theme parks, two water parks, dozens of hotels, and more.
Solar Projects at Walt Disney World
The newest solar facility is a 74,500-kilowatt, 484-acre site in Levy County, Florida. It now supplies clean electricity to Walt Disney World. Built and operated by Bronson Solar in collaboration with the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District, this site helps diversify energy sources across multiple locations.
This new facility joins Walt Disney World’s fan-favorite “Hidden Mickey” solar array, a 5,000-kilowatt installation shaped like Mickey Mouse near EPCOT. There are other large solar projects across Florida as well.
Here’s what that approximate level of solar energy adds up to over the course of an average year:
- Reducing annual greenhouse gas emissions by more than 140,000 metric tons
- Removing nearly 33,000 gasoline-powered cars from the road each year
- Powering 19,000 homes’ energy use for one year
- Charging 15 billion smartphones
- Growing 2 million tree seedlings for 10 years
- Recycling the equivalent of 7,000 garbage trucks of waste instead of landfilling
- Powering the monorail for 34 years
Other Disney Solar Projects
Walt Disney World isn’t the only Disney destination making the Earth a greener place. Circle D Ranch, home to the resort’s horses and the first zero-waste certified facility at The Walt Disney Company, is now powered by renewable electricity thanks to a new onsite solar and battery storage system.
The resort is also expanding clean transportation infrastructure with a new EV charging depot featuring 20 Level 2 chargers and a DC fast charger. Today, one in six operational fleet vehicles at Disneyland Resort is electric, meaning 50,000 gallons of gasoline are not used each year.
In addition, the resort now sources 60% of its electricity from renewable energy resources. And over at Disney California Adventure, Radiator Springs Racers is powered by 1,400 solar panels.
Other Disney destinations, including Hong Kong Disneyland Resort, Shanghai Disney Resort, Tokyo Disney Resort, and Disneyland Paris, have their own energy initiatives. Even Disney Cruise Line is prioritizing reducing emissions at its island destinations.
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