It is no surprise that one of the biggest and probably the most prized billboard spot in the world is going now to a company that is willing to go green with its power supply to light up the ad space and of course is willing to pay around $200,000 each month for the prized spot. Ricoh is all ready to put up its new eco-friendly and carbon neutral billboard that will exclusively run on nothing but wind and solar energy. If they both are unavailable, then Ricoh is ready to go dark, but not use conventional power to light up this coveted spot! (Talk about commitment)

The $3 million billboard weighs in at 35,000 pounds. It will be 55 feet off the ground at 3 Times Square, wrapping around the northwest corner of Seventh Avenue and 42nd Street. The billboard will be powered by 16 cylindrical wind turbines which are efficient in energy production both in low and high winds. It will also use the 64 solar panels that cover its surface to gain additional power on a day with calmer weather. Apart from being great for the planet, the sign could save as much as $12,000 to $15,000 per month, according to Ricoh, which estimated that the sign would prevent 18 tons of carbon from being spewed into the air yearly.

The sign will use conventional lighting instead of LED lights and while it is great news for the planet in a small yet important way, it is more important that people see this as a trend and it catches on. Just imagine the amount of energy one could save and also the carbon emissions that could be cut out.

Via: NYTimes