Schools Green Their Building With Lighting Retrofits

Ten years ago, making a school "green" meant turning off unnecessary lights and carefully recycling trash.

While the basics are still important, today a green school could include geothermal heat exchangers and solar energy, strategies that used to be too expensive to consider.

The environmental pluses of green technology long have been recognized, said Mike Walsh, deputy secretary for administration at the state Department of Education.

But now he said, "In these tough economic times, there is becoming more of an economic argument to do this."

With improvements in quality, price and incentives, there's a greater opportunity for energy savings to offset the costs of technology.

"Solar panels cost less than they did five or 10 years ago. You see a better return," said Mr. Walsh. "Geothermal is an emerging area of renewable energy. It costs less than it did five years ago. People are thinking about wind. They weren't thinking about it five or 10 years ago."

Grants and other incentives also contribute to making technology more affordable. Over the past year, millions of dollars of government grants and incentives for renewable energy and other green measures have helped to make more options affordable.

A Pennsylvania Energy Development Authority grant covered nearly half of the $515,861 cost to install exterior LED lighting in 10 locations in the Pittsburgh Public Schools district.

The grant lowered the payback time -- the time in which the savings would cover the cost -- from 12.6 years to 6.5 years. The new lighting, nearly completed, is expected to save $40,881 a year.

Carlisle Area School District in Cumberland County got enough grants -- including $1 million from the federal economic stimulus, $950,000 from the state and $500,000 from its local electric company -- to pay for more than half of the $4.8 million cost to build the largest solar array of any public school district in the state.

The array, which includes four types of solar technology and covers 6.2 acres, was dedicated last month. The system will be an integral part of the curriculum, with students evaluating how well each type works.

The project is expected to pay for itself in 41/2 years by saving $150,000 a year in utility bills and by selling renewable energy credits to utility companies for nearly $500,000 a year, said Tom Longnecker, director of finance for Carlisle Area.

Two competitive federal school bond programs -- totaling $602 million statewide -- that underwrite interest made energy efficiency a top criterion for consideration in Pennsylvania.

The grants and incentives are intended at least in part to show others what is possible and to increase demand for green products.

Maureen Guttman, executive director of the Governor's Green Government Council, said she thinks the reasons for using green technology are even more compelling for schools than for the private sector.

"We really do have the data to show that the operating costs are significantly lower, and every school district we know is hurting for dollars," she said. "It's just the mindset of an initial capital investment which then has a long-term payoff."

Beyond the energy savings, Chris Berdnik, chief financial/chief operations officer for Pittsburgh Public Schools, said green buildings have the potential to increase academic performance.

"There's a significant amount of research that kids learn best when there's good natural classroom light and excellent indoor air quality," said Mr. Berdnik.

A group of state agencies has formed Pathways to Green Schools and named Pittsburgh and Norristown as pilot school districts. As such, they will receive technical assistance.

At the end of this school year, Pittsburgh plans to start a $14 million renovation of Pittsburgh Northview PreK-8 that will include green technology that will reduce the building's energy usage by about 45 percent.

One of the most unusual features at Northview is the use of a geothermal heating and cooling system.

No other K-12 school district in Allegheny County has installed a geothermal system, and only a handful of school districts across the state are doing or have done so, said Mr. Walsh.

Pittsburgh also plans to include a geothermal system in a renovation of Pittsburgh Arlington PreK-8 and is considering geothermal for Pittsburgh Oliver High School.

The geothermal systems that schools use in Pennsylvania do not typically generate electricity but instead use the temperature deep in the ground to help heat or cool a building.

A geothermal heat pump -- or ground source heat pump -- pumps heat from the ground in cold weather via water in a closed loop system and from the school to the ground in hot weather.

At Northview, the school's large parking lot will be torn up -- with the asphalt saved for reuse when the lot is restored -- and 60 wells will be drilled, each about six inches in diameter, 500 feet deep and 20 feet apart. They will be connected underground by water-filled pipes in a closed loop.

The heat exchange will take place in a mechanical house built on the parking lot.

Inside the school, each classroom will be able to control its own ventilator, which will have water-filled coils that heat or cool the room. The ventilators also will add fresh air from outside.

With the Northview project, the school district will seek its first LEED -- Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design -- certification.

The geothermal system is just one of a long list of green improvements that will be used to seek the rating at Northview.

Other improvements will include:

• New large windows with thermal panes tailored for northern or southern exposures

• Classroom overhead lights that automatically turn off in portions of the room where there is enough daylight

• A new roof will be well-insulated and a reflective white.

• Water will be collected from a roof to provide "gray water" for some of the toilets and urinals

• Two solar panels will be installed on a roof so science classes can study their energy production. A garden and a green wall -- a wall covered with plants -- will provide other educational opportunities

Other city schools also are getting various elements of green technology.

"In all of our projects when we design, we've always incorporated green," said Vidyahar Patil, director of facilities/plant operations.

Some other local K-12 school buildings have earned various LEED certifications, including Our Lady of the Sacred Heart High School in Coraopolis, Rowe Hall at Shady Side Academy and Wilson Elementary School in the Albert Gallatin School District.

A few others have Energy Star certifications for their conservation efforts, including Jeannette Senior High School and six buildings in the Hempfield Area School District.

Maximizing the benefits of green technology requires changing habits and making it part of the educational program, officials say.

On a tour of Northview, school officials noted an unused computer monitor left on, wasting electricity. Daylight was diminished because classroom blinds were pulled down and used as display space for children's work.

The Pittsburgh district has a labor-management energy committee as well as a group including students, employees and community members to help save energy.

Northview's design includes educational kiosks and exposed pipes so that students -- and staff -- will understand how their building works.

Carla Worthington, project manager and an architect with Renaissance 3 Architects, said the project will be a "great educational tool for the children and for the public."
Education writer Eleanor Chute: echute@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1955.

First published on November 8, 2010 at 12:00 am


Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10312/1101565-298.stm#ixzz14ikbGtgh

LED Lighting Retrofits- BLOG Sponsor
 
A good practice for businesses looking to reduce energy expenses is to consider an LED lighting retrofit. Lighting retrofits replace lighting with newer technology such as LED linear lighting to save on energy costs and maintenance costs. Many building experts recommend a lighting retrofit as the first step to reducing energy costs. Redbird LED is an Atlanta based manufacturer and designer of Premium LED lights at value price points. For more information please visit their LED Retrofit website or call ( 678) 733-2473