Public schools are increasingly using savings from solar to upgrade facilities, help their communities and give teachers raises — often at no cost to taxpayers.
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One school district was able to give its teachers pay raises as large as 30 percent. Another bought new heating and ventilation systems, the better to help students and teachers breathe easier during these times. The improvements didn’t cost taxpayers a cent, and were paid for by an endlessly renewable source – the sun.
As solar gains traction across the country, one beneficiary has been schools, especially those in cash-strapped districts struggling with declining tax bases.
From New Jersey to California, nearly one in 10 K-12 public and private schools nationwide used solar energy by early 2022, according to data released Thursday by Generation180, a nonprofit that promotes and tracks clean energy. That is twice as many as in 2015.
The savings in electricity bills from schools with solar panels often topped millions in each district, and many have been able to adopt the technology without incurring any upfront costs.
“If you’re conservative, we didn’t ask you for more taxes, if you’re liberal, you love the green concept,” said Michael Hester, superintendent of schools in Batesville, Ark., where solar panels paid for teacher raises. “It’s a win-win.”
In Heart-Butte, Mont., the school’s superintendent, Mike Tatsey, provided three-quarters of the energy credits generated by the district’s new solar panels to help lower the electricity bills of households in the community, which is located on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation. He believed that freeing up extra spending for staples such as groceries and shoes could have a ripple effect in classrooms.
“That little bit, in my mind, can help a family feel better about themselves, and the kids feel better about themselves,” Mr. Tatsey said. “In a roundabout way, when they get to school, because of that little bit of extra hope we can give, they’ll be ready to learn.”
In Louisa County, Virginia, school administrators used federal Covid recovery and local funds to place 32 solar-powered mobile Wi-Fi stations throughout the community during the height of the pandemic, helping to connect families and the roughly 40 percent of students who did do not have reliable internet access. “The beautiful part of the project was that once we designed the Wi-Fi trailers, we had high school students build them,” said David Childress, the district’s director of technology.
Solar systems installed at the schools were also estimated to save the Louisa district up to $8 million over three decades, and while no savings were expected in the first year, 2021, the increase in energy costs meant they ended up saving $4,000 in the first six months. Douglas Straley, the district’s superintendent, said the plan was to put the savings into classrooms by adding new programs and improving existing ones.
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In Wise County in southwest Virginia, where solar energy is expected to save the school district $7.5 million over 35 years, the project paid for solar apprenticeships that officials said were badly needed; the region had long been economically dependent on coal. This summer, 10 high school students helped with the installation while earning $17 an hour plus a stipend over eight weeks, along with college credits to become solar and electrical technicians.
“We’ve been trying to diversify our finances,” said Greg Mullins, who recently retired as superintendent of schools there. “This gives them the skills to allow them to manufacture and install solar energy, and perhaps to be able to make a living somewhere in this part of the world.”
After salaries, energy is the second largest expense for public elementary schools, according to White House figures, at about $8 billion a year. Newly available federal funding for school energy upgrades in the infrastructure bill, along with incentives to adopt solar energy in recently passed climate legislation, are predicted to offset these costs while providing environmental benefits.
If all of the roughly 130,000 K-12 schools were to go completely solar, Generation180 calculated that there would be an annual reduction of 60 million tons in carbon emissions, the equivalent of closing 16 coal-fired power plants. As of early 2022, the nonprofit found that roughly 8,400 schools had solar installations, generating enough energy to power 300,000 homes, triple the collective solar capacity schools had eight years ago. About half of the public schools that have solar panels are eligible for Title 1 funding, meaning at least 40 percent of their students qualify as low-income.
For most schools, the ability to use solar depends on local policies that allow third-party solar ownership. Under these agreements, solar companies pay for solar systems in advance, along with installation, operation and maintenance. In return for housing the system, schools typically purchase electricity at reduced rates, and can redirect the savings to classroom or facility maintenance. According to Generation180, such agreements are essential, and have been used to pay for nearly 90 percent of total solar capacity at schools.
Roadblocks remain. Because consumers who can generate their own electricity buy less power from the grid, some utilities want to charge rooftop solar owners fees that could negate their savings, or credit them for less than the retail cost of the energy their panels produce. In California, a leader in renewable energy, the Public Commission is considering a proposal that would reduce incentives for homeowners to install solar panels and cut solar growth in the state.
“It’s not a national condition, it’s a patchwork of state by state, even city by city and county by county,” said Michael Craig, an assistant professor specializing in renewable energy and decarbonization at the University of Michigan.
Anthony Smith, president and founder of Secure Futures, a solar company in Virginia, was developing a solar system using a third-party agreement at Washington and Lee University 10 years ago when his company received a cease-and-desist letter from a local utility. He has since lobbied for legislation that passed in 2013 and 2020, encouraging solar adoption in the state. “We’re not just in the solar business, we’re in the solar business,” he said.
Despite pushback from energy companies, the number of states that allow third-party ownership is growing, according to Generation180, and now stands at 30 — recent additions include Mississippi — along with Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico. With the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, more schools will be able to purchase their systems directly by using a credit covering 30 percent of the costs.
Doug Arnold, who oversees facility upgrades and major projects for Orange County Public Schools in Virginia, said when the district first considered solar panels six years ago, the project was met with opposition from the school board. After Virginia passed its solar legislation in 2020, the project, by Secure Futures, became a better deal and received board approval.
Solar panels installed at seven schools would end up offsetting up to 91 percent of electrical use per school, saving them about $130,000 a year and $9.5 million over 35 years.
“The tax base is low here, there’s not a lot of industry there, and there’s no interest in ever raising taxes,” Arnold said.
In Arkansas, the Batesville school district became the first in the state to go solar after a Republican-sponsored bill passed in 2018 that allowed both third-party solar ownership and increased solar capacity. The bill had bipartisan support, along with heavy support from Walmart, which is headquartered there.
Mr. Hester, superintendent of schools in the Batesville district, said their savings from solar energy were initially estimated at $2 million over two decades, until rising energy costs at least doubled that number. The resulting increase in teacher salaries attracted international attention. Their base salaries went from about $30,000 to more than $40,000, Mr. Hester said, allowing the district to attract teachers despite a statewide shortage and without forcing it to seek additional tax dollars.
About 30 other school districts in the area have since adopted solar energy, he said.
Tish Tablan, program director at Generation180, said the normalization of solar was particularly potent when it came to public schools. “When schools go solar, students learn about it, they talk to parents, families get inspired,” she said, “we see a ripple effect across communities.”
Because schools often serve as common hubs in climate crises, which are on the rise, she said it was crucial that they are self-sufficient and resilient. After wildfires and deadly mudslides devastated Santa Barbara County, California, in early 2018, the school district began installing solar installations and microgrids with battery storage. When the project is complete, as much as 94 percent of the district’s energy will come from renewable sources, according to Laura Capps, a school board member.
In the borough of Eatontown, N.J., Scott McCue, the schools superintendent, said his district had to replace its heating and ventilation systems in the face of losing $2.4 million in state funding over seven years. It sold $4.6 million in bonds to pay for energy upgrades such as retrofit lighting and solar installations, which will cover between 80 and 90 percent of the energy needs of school buildings as well as the cost of 26 new HVAC units, without using taxpayer funds.
Mr McCue said the solar panels will also benefit the school’s curriculum. In 2020, New Jersey’s Department of Education adopted new standards requiring climate change to be taught in public schools. Mr McCue said the new solar panels will be used as educational tools on site. “It’s a great hands-on way to teach students not only how solar energy helps the earth and the environment, but also, if the project is done right, how it can also directly benefit the consumer,” he said.
Back in Batesville, Ark., Mr. Hester said the school district’s solar panel had the completely unexpected effect of drawing attention to what he described as the “sexiest thing we’ve done”: putting up solar screens over loading zones at middle schools and high schools. Sky-high and enormous, they provide shelter from rain and sun, and may well be the closest Batesville has, at least in appearance, to an international airport.
After the canopies went up, carloads of people, many of them decades out of high school, started stopping by during recess and on weekends to take them in and take pictures, Mr. Hester said. “It’s just gone crazy,” Mr. Hester said.
Where is solar energy used the most?
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- China – 32%
- USA – 16%
- Japan – 9%
- India – 7%
- Germany – 6%
Where is solar energy used the most? China boasts by far the world’s largest installed solar fleet, measured at 205 GW in 2019, according to the IEA’s Renewables 2020 report. In the same year, power production from solar energy was 223.8 terawatt hours (TWh) in the country.
What country uses the most solar energy 2021?
United States *1 megawatt = 1,000,000 watts. See the article : New stable quantum batteries can reliably store energy into electromagnetic fields. China is the undisputed leader in solar installations, with over 35% of global capacity.
Which country is the largest producer of solar energy in 2022?
China’s 307 gigawatts of solar power is already the largest total installed capacity in the world. China is set to double its record rate of new solar development by 2022, according to state media, with a goal of installing 108 gigawatts of solar power this year. “Asia’s solar growth has been under the radar.
What country uses the most solar energy?
1. China â 205 GW. China boasts by far the world’s largest installed solar fleet, measured at 205 GW in 2019, according to the IEA’s Renewables 2020 report. In the same year, power production from solar energy was 223.8 terawatt hours (TWh) in the country.
How does solar energy reduce pollution?
The use of solar energy systems on buildings displaces electricity generation from coal, natural gas and oil power plants, which can reduce air pollutants such as nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide and mercury; and greenhouse gas emissions such as carbon dioxide.
How does solar energy help reduce pollution? Solar energy technologies and power plants do not produce air pollution or greenhouse gases during operation. The use of solar energy can have a positive, indirect effect on the environment when solar energy replaces or reduces the use of other energy sources that have greater effects on the environment.
How does solar energy improve the environment?
As a renewable energy source, solar energy plays an important role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and mitigating climate change, which is essential to protect people, wildlife and ecosystems. Solar energy can also improve air quality and reduce water use from energy production.
What are 2 positive effects of solar energy on the environment?
As it relies mainly on the sun, the primary way solar energy positively impacts the environment is that it reduces carbon emissions and greenhouse gases. Unlike fossil fuels, solar energy uses no pollutants and requires no other resources to function other than clean water.
How much does solar energy reduce air pollution?
Specifically, the report found that by installing 400 GW of solar capacity by 2030, there would be a 1.2% reduction in air pollution-related premature deaths. Another benefit of switching to solar energy is that this transition also reduces our collective demand for water.
How much CO2 pollution do solar panels save?
Solar energy carbon footprint Around 50 g of CO2 per kilowatt hour is produced during the first years of operation of a solar energy system. The solar panel’s carbon footprint is approximately 20 times smaller than the carbon production from coal-fired electricity sources.
Do solar panels decrease pollution?
Reduces air pollution These harmful gases not only increase respiratory health risks, but also contribute to climate change. Solar panels do not need to burn fossil fuels to generate electricity, which is why installing solar panels significantly reduces air pollution.
How do solar panels reduce water pollution?
Although fossil fuel production requires significant water resources and causes water pollution, solar energy requires little or no water to operate. So not only does solar power not pollute water resources, it also doesn’t put a strain on the world’s water supply. Solar energy also works during droughts or heat waves.
How much pollution does solar panels reduce?
A residential solar panel system, for example, has the ability to meet the electricity needs of an entire home with approximately 80% lower carbon emissions than fossil fuels.
Are solar panels really environmentally friendly?
Unlike fossil fuel-generated electricity, solar panels are incredibly efficient at maximizing electricity production while minimizing carbon emissions. In fact, carbon pollution and rising temperatures caused by fossil fuel extraction and generation have put 314 species of North American birds at risk.
How is solar energy used to power schools?
California also allows power purchase agreements that allow schools to install solar panels without paying any upfront costs. In a power purchase agreement, a third party owns and installs the system and sells the power generated by the solar panels directly to the school.
How can solar energy be used in schools? Rooftop solar projects at schools can reduce harmful air pollution, help the environment and improve student learning while reducing electricity costs, a new study finds. Overall, the energy switch could bring benefits worth $4 billion.
Why is renewable energy good for schools?
A renewable energy system at the school gives students a learning experience on site while also contributing to the school’s energy needs. Students learn about real energy issues, including the need to reduce fossil fuel use, and the school reduces energy costs.
How can solar energy be used to power homes schools and businesses?
The most commonly used solar energy technologies for homes and businesses are solar panels for electricity, passive solar design for space heating and cooling, and solar water heating. Businesses and industries use solar technology to diversify their energy sources, improve efficiency and save money.
How does solar energy power your home?
When the sun shines on a solar panel, energy from the sunlight is absorbed by the PV cells in the panel. This energy creates electrical charges that move in response to an internal electric field within the cell, causing electricity to flow.
How do businesses use solar energy?
Become a green business Generating electricity from solar energy means your business uses less fossil fuel, which reduces pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. By switching to solar energy, the company is doing its part to combat climate change and reduce the country’s dependence on foreign energy sources.
How many solar panels does it take to power a school?
According to the study, the average school solar system is about 300 kilowatts, which is 900 to 1,200 panels.
Can solar energy be used in schools?
There are now 7,332 K-12 schools using solar energy nationwide, accounting for 5.5% of all K-12 public and private schools in the United States. Since 2014, K-12 schools have seen a 139% increase in the amount of solar installed. Today, 5.3 million students attend a school with solar energy.
How much does 1 solar panel produce per day?
Although there are many factors that affect the amount of energy a solar panel can produce, you can expect a typical single solar panel in the US to generate about 2 kWh per day, saving an average of $0.36 on electricity costs per day.
How many solar panels do I need for a power plant?
You can calculate how many solar panels you need by multiplying your household’s hourly energy needs by the maximum sunlight hours for your area and dividing by a panel’s output. Use a low power (150 W) and high power (370 W) example to establish a range (eg: 17-42 panels to generate 11,000 kWh/year).
Do solar panels hurt the environment?
As solar panels sit in landfills, the toxic metals they contain can leach into the environment and potentially pose a public health hazard if they enter the groundwater supply.”
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