Despite his WTF decision to send his herd of dairy cows to the slaughterhouse in order to keep his carbon footprint in check, Britain’s Prince Charles is generally a pretty thoughtful chap with regard to Mother Nature’s creatures. And he’s certainly the reigning monarch of sustainability, whether via the eco-renovation of his Romanian farmhouse property, 24 year commitment to organic farming, tireless work promoting environmental issues such as his water conservation-themed ‘Snub The Tub’ campaign or the facilitation of eco-charity through his upcoming “Garden Party To Make a Difference” at his personal crib Clarence House from September 8 – 19.

The 61 year old, who is attributed with personally reducing his carbon footprint at each of his four residences by 4% and also boosting his use of green power by 22%, is taking Clarence House in an even more efficient direction. The 19^th century dwelling – which was deemed carbon neutral three years ago due to such efforts as using household grey water to irrigate landscaping and installing low-energy boilers – will soon be fitted with 32 rooftop solar panels, generating 4,000 kilowatt hours of energy annually (estimated to be the same amount consumed by a typical household each year).

Prince Charles is reportedly footing the $46,500 bill himself and any excess energy produced could potentially earn him roughly 63 cents/41 pence per unit (a reminder of how it definitely pays to green up one’s act). Hmmm, the first question that springs to mind is: ‘How long is it going to take for the Obama administration to follow suit (just like Jimmy Carter did in the seventies) by setting a positive clean green energy example for America?’ Charles is more than fulfilling his role as a figurehead  ‘for a purpose’ — to tackle global warming. Wonder when our government is going to catch on…

Via USA Today