The Big Green Bus Visits Zion National Park

Date: July 12, 2007

July 12, 2007
For Immediate Release
Ron Terry  435 772-0160
Lisa Ogden  435-772-0191
07-15

The Big Green Bus will be coming to Zion National Park and Springdale, Utah, on Sunday and Monday, July 15 and 16. The bus and several students from Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire, are touring the country educating Americans about renewable energy and sustainable lifestyles. On July 15, the bus will be in the Zion Canyon Visitor Center parking lot in the morning and at the Zion Lodge in the afternoon. The bus will be at the Springdale Community Center on July 16.  The public is invited to tour the bus and talk with the students. 

The bus is a retired school bus retrofitted to run on waste vegetable oil collected from restaurants.  It is a rolling eco-lab of interactive exhibits and presentations, demonstrating alternative energy systems.  These systems include a NASA quality solar panel, providing electricity for their flat screen plasma television and laptop computers, and a telescoping wind turbine. They will also provide information about simple cost-effective methods that every person can use to reduce their environmental impact. 

The bus and Dartmouth students, in their third year on the road, will tour over 45 cities between June and August. They have appeared on Good Morning America, MTV, and CNN.  For more information about the bus, go to their website, www.thebiggreenbus.org.       

Within the national park system, Zion National Park is recognized as a leader in sustainable practices.  The appearance of the Big Green Bus at Zion National Park is consistent with the park’s commitment to sustainable design, renewable energy, and energy efficiency.