2009.11.25 – School officials say let the sun shine in on new solar project
Excerpt from the full article found at: http://www2.mcdowellnews.com/content/2009/nov/25/school-officials-say-let-sun-shine-new-solar-proje/
There won’t be any “semi-pro” football games at McDowell High School but there will be an expanded course offering there. The school administration is preparing for a fancy new solar power system and accepting estimates on major roofing projects
Those are some of the highlights of the McDowell County Board of Education’s regular meeting for November.
Board Attorney Chris Campbell made a rare appearance at the meeting to explain his contract negotiations with FLS Solar of Asheville. FLS proposed to the board last summer a plan to install solar water heaters on the roofs of three schools and provide hot water at a fixed rate for 10 years. The rate is cheaper than the current cost per gallon of hot water heated by gas.
FLS will own the system and hold a lease on the roof space. The company will be in a position to sell the tax credits available to users of solar power on the open market. Such tax credits are valuable offsets for industrial polluters, Campbell explained.
As a government entity, the school system would not be able to realize or market the tax credits themselves.
The school system would have the option to renew the contract or buy the equipment at the end of the contract’s term, Campbell explained.
“You’ll be pioneers in this area,” he stated. “Many of my clients are talking about this and most are looking at doing business with FLS.” Campbell represents several public school systems in the region.
Associate Superintendent Mike Murray said, as he told the board after FLS’s presentation last summer, that he had visited FLS facilities in Buncombe County and was very impressed by what he had learned. He said he expected to save about 30 percent over the current cost of hot water.
The board instructed Campbell to finalize the negotiation and to advertise the roof space lease, as required by law. If all goes as planned, the high school, East Junior High and Marion Elementary will have solar systems installed on the roofs.
Those schools were selected based on the condition of the roofs. ….
