Berkeley School Board: Let the Sun Shine

Berkeley school district officials are exploring options to switch to solar power under a power purchase agreement.

“We are moving ahead with alternative energy,” schools Superintendent Joseph H. Vicari said. “We viewed which plans are effective. The efficiency will pay for itself.”   

Board of Education members listened to a solar energy presentation by consulting engineer from Pennoni Associates at a recent board meeting. The presentation focused on options for power purchase agreements. Board members then agreed to let board President James Byrnes begin examining different options.

Byrnes, who also chairs the board's building and grounds committee, could not be reached for comment.

Vicari said a solar power purchase agreement has two main components: the use of solar power and increased energy efficiency.

The buildings and grounds committee has completed a survey on the energy needs of the four schools in the K-6 district and has begun to prepare for competitive bids, Vicari said.  

District officials are considering a power purchase agreement because the Board of Education doesn't want to spend money upfront to install the solar panels, he said.

“To go out to bond, people can’t afford it," Vicari said. "People want to save the cost of energy, and we want to save the taxpayers of Berkeley Township money.”

Both he and Byrnes have experience using solar power, Vicari said.

Vicari — a longtime Ocean County freeholder — said he was part of the county effort to install solar panels on the roof of the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office in Toms River.

“This is proven technology," he said. "It is all made in the United States: the solar panels and the solar arrays.”

The district has unused land where the panels could be installed, Vicari said.

Solar power savings are two-fold. On a sunny day they can provide total electricity for lighting, heating and air-conditioning in the school buildings. When school is not in use, the energy generated by the panels can be sold back to Jersey Central Power and Light Company for utility bill credits, Vicari said.

The credits have already generated savings for the county when offices are closed on the weekends. Credit revenues for Berkeley schools would be greater, since all of the solar power generated when schools are closed during the summer can be sold back to JCP&L, he said.

“So we get money for the town," Vicari said. "The way we save with solar panels is when the sun is out we save money and generate electricity.When school is closed, in the summer, we will sell it to JCP&L. So the money comes from two ends.”

The district would also receive a credit from the state for using clean alternative energy sources.

“We will save money," he said. "We can program the solar panels to save energy. It reduces our carbon footprint. It reduces our use of energy.”

Vicari said the solar panels are guaranteed for 25 years after installation and have a life expectancy of 40 years.

“It is a proven technology," he said. "All we have to decide is how to pay for the power purchase agreement.”

“The energy [source] is the sun," Vicari said. "The life expectancy of the sun is 5 billion years. We have been using the sun since the days of the Egyptians for light and energy. More and more in the USA and around the globe people are realizing the impact of solar energy."