Depp’s Green Island Home
August 5, 2008 12:33 pm Film and Tele, In the News
In the latest celebrity move to show support for environmental awareness, Johnny Depp has bought his own $3.6m island. Besides using it as a hideout from the paparazzi, the actor has some interesting plans for it.
His 35-acre plot in the Bahamas, aptly called “F*ck Off Island”, of course has no power lines or other technology connecting it with the outside world.
Thus, Depp met with a bit of a challenge in powering his island getaway. Diesel generators were not a conceivable option to the star so he turned to Mike Strizki, a pioneer in self-sustainable environments.
Self-Sustaining Habitat Design
Strizki designed a system for Depp’s island, which closely resembles Strizki’s New Jersey home, only on a much larger scale. The home was the nation’s first solar-hydrogen house in existence. You can check out a tour of the complex by Strizki himself.
The solar system developed by Strizki uses the sun’s energy to power his home and also has a system in place to store energy for future consumption.
Basically, the sun powers the solar panels, creating a DC current. The current is then converted into AC and run into an electrolyzer, purifying tap water into a fuel cell stack.
Hydrogen and oxygen are then split up; oxygen being released into the air and hydrogen stored in propane tanks for use when the sun is absent.
If Celebrities Can Do It…
Thus, the whole island will be powered on solar energy alone, which boosts the actor’s green credentials into the ranks of Leo DiCaprio, Robert Redford, and many more!
While we can’t all afford to establish a solar system on our own private islands, it’s great that many of these limelight frequenters are doing what they can to help, and setting a good example and bringing awareness around the country and globe.
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August 15th, 2008 at 8:36 am
[…] add to our fantasy, he is investing in a state-of-the-art solar power system to keep the island completely cut off from the grid. The system also integrates hydrogen power that […]
June 1st, 2009 at 6:36 pm
[…] private island getaway. In the article, our-future-husband discusses how he has taken advantage of sustainable energy to keep his paparazzi-free paradise as green as possible. Sexy, smart, and an advocate of the […]