Greener Schools as Well as Jobs
Education construction jobs represent about 27 percent of all construction in the U.S. Despite a lagging economy, hundreds of millions of dollars are making their way into green school upgrades and new construction. Some $14 billion will be spent in 2010 building new schools (about 750 new schools are built in the U.S. per year), says School Planning & Management Magazine. Here is another interesting statistic – about one-fourth of the U.S. population spends a good part of each day inside a school building.
Greening of schools is a thriving enterprise. Leaders from all sectors of green schools will gather to share strategies, technologies and best practices at the Green California Schools Summit 2010 in Pasadena, California. The event, which will also feature an exposition of more than 100 companies with innovative products and services, will take place at the Pasadena Convention Center on December 8 to 10, 2010. Eric Corey Freed, principal of organicARCHITECT and author of four books on green building, will be a keynote speaker.
Each week in the news, we find stories not only of green building initiatives but also green energy powering part or all of the school. Often there is an educational component that goes along with the installation and use of green energy (most often wind or solar.) Just a few examples from across the U.S. follows:
The San Diego Unified School District Board of Education approved a partnerships with AMSOLAR Corp, and 5.2 MW of solar power will be built for district schools. 20 sites have been selected and about 23,000 solar panels will be placed on 80 rooftops, providing 100 KW to 500 KW per campus. About 64% of the energy needs of the campuses will be supplied. The School district estimates it will save between $13 million to $20 million over the life of the program in utility costs. AMSOLAR will bring renewable energy to the curriculum, give teaching grants and build laptop charging stations.
In the Midwest, three Illinois school districts say their planned wind farm will generate all the energy they need, plus extra so that they could make $3 million per year selling it to the grid. The Chicago area districts formed the School Wind Consortium, which is issuing bonds and seeking federal grants. In fact, Illinois legislation in 2007 allowed schools to reduce energy costs by owning and running wind farms. Meanwhile, in southern Illinois, solar panels are going to power four schools, thanks in part to state grants. The Superintendent of District 7 (Edwardsville) Ed Hightower, said that the panels will not only save on energy costs but will serve as hands-on examples for science and math classes throughout the district. The curriculum is being revamped.
The Suncoast High School in Palm Beach, Florida had 22 solar panels installed this fall by Florida Power & Light, as part of its Solar Stations Program to promote classroom learning about renewable energy. It is a high performing school, especially in math and science, and was named the country’s 9th best high school by Newsweek Magazine. The solar panels will power up to five classrooms, and “…is a powerful learning tool,” says Scott Howard, a Suncoast physics teacher. One student is already studying the amount of energy that is absorbed by the panels and changed into electricity, says Howard. The panels will save the school about $800 per year in FPL bills, says the utility. The Solar Station Program trains teachers by providing them with solar curriculum – eight schools are participating so far.
Meanwhile, up in Wisconsin, the SolarWise for Schools program dedicated eight solar panels at Green Bay Preble High this fall. They are expected to save $300 this year on electric bills, but “students are hoping to save the world,” says Mike Moore, program manager. Students will now learn about renewable energy in a tangible way.
The Albert M Greenfield School is the first school in Philadelphia to be equipped with solar panels. 26 panels were installed, providing an estimated 6,400 KW annually. The project will help teach students about the environment, energy and eco-friendly approaches.
Circling back to California, the Huntington Beach City School District and Chevron Energy Solutions have teamed up on an energy efficiency and solar project. They broke ground on October 20th, 2010 and expect completion in 2011. The program is expected to save the district more than $15 million over the life of the project. It is the first energy efficiency and solar project at an elementary school district in Orange County. Chevron designed and engineered the 615 KW solar system, and it will install, operate, maintain and guarantee the performance – expected to meet more than 30% of the district’s electricity needs.
And finally, in Hawaii, the Governor has released $500,000 for the construction of a solar power system for Lanikai Elementary Public Charter School. The panels will be installed on the cafeteria roof, and electricity costs are expected to be reduced by about $45,000 per year. The project is to be complete in the spring of 2011. Hawaii has a goal of generating 70% of its energy needs from renewable sources by 2030.
