More than 3,700 solar power systems are installed at public and private K-12 schools in the USA according to a report from The Solar Foundation.
Nearly 2.7 million students are attending schools gaining some of their electricity by harvesting the power of the sun.
The report states electricity generated in one year by all 3,727 PV systems represents a combined value of USD $77.8 million per year and averages $21,000 a year per school.
Nearly half of the systems currently installed are larger than 50 kilowatts capacity and 55 schools have systems larger than 1 megawatt.
While the uptake is impressive, it’s still a drop in the educational institution ocean in the USA. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, there were approximately 132,000 public and private schools operating during the 2009-2010 school year.
The report states between 40,000 and 72,000 schools could go solar cost effectively. 450 individual school districts could each save more than a million dollars over three decades by installing solar panels.
If 72,000 US schools installed solar power systems, the combined electricity generation would offset greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to taking approximately 1 million cars off the USA’s roads.
The 39-page report, “Brighter Future : A Study on Solar in U.S. Schools”, can be viewed here (PDF). The report was prepared for the US Department of Energy’s SunShot Solar Outreach Partnership program and supported by the Solar Energy Industries Association.
Closer to home, more $217 million was provided to thousands of Australian schools to install solar power systems under the National Solar Schools Program (NSSP). The solar power systems installed under the initiative generate enough electricity to power the equivalent of 4600 average households.
While the NSSP is no longer available, schools in Australia interested in going solar are able to take advantage of other incentives and finance arrangements; making solar a viable way for schools to reduce their power bills and carbon footprint; while providing added education opportunities for students – the solar industry workers of tomorrow.
