This past week, we marked the first year of the Barn being online as part of the Belmont Day campus. With the construction of the Barn, we included numerous energy efficiencies including a large solar array on the roof. We are pleased to report that after one year of operation, the solar array has produced 69.98 MWh (Mega watts), which equals approximately 15% of the Barn’s total energy usage. This is important as all of the building systems are driven by electricity, and because as the school receives its power from Belmont Light, which is a municipal power company, the school is not eligible for state or federal rebates. Thus, the installation of the solar array is both a commitment to being better stewards of our environment and a cost-conscience investment toward savings of operational funds.
Overall this past year, the use of the solar array has saved us from creating an additional 108,427.16 lbs of CO2 emissions. That is the equivalent of:
- driving 120,250 miles by a mid-size car.
- consuming 5,534 gallons of gasoline or 4,831 gallons of diesel fuel.
- burning 53,767 pounds of coal.
- 2,146 trash bags of waste being recycled instead of being sent to a landfill.
- replacing 1868 incandescent light bulbs with LED lights.
Finally, the energy we saved is equivalent to planting 2,731 trees, with all the associated benefits they bring in our lives. We look forward to continued efficiencies in 2020 and beyond!
Check out our Solar Kiosk for a live glimpse at the daily energy production and the collateral environmental savings and benefits produced by this installation.
