Photo courtesy of PennEnvironment

Students, parents and teachers headed back to school, often in energy-inefficient buildings, across Pennsylvania this week. In response, the statewide nonprofit group PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center released a new study, Solar Schools for Pennsylvania: Repowering Education with Clean Energy.

The report authors found that using solar energy in schools across Pennsylvania could produce as much electricity as is needed to power 187,000 homes each year, reduce climate-warming carbon dioxide pollution equal to taking nearly 300,000 cars off the road annually, and save Pennsylvania schools an estimated $342 million over the lifetime of the systems, even without soon-to-expire federal tax credits.

“Repowering Pennsylvania’s schools with solar energy can pay dividends for local taxpayers, our health and our planet,” noted Carolena Bellini, the Clean Energy Associate at the PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center. “There’s never been a better time for schools to ‘go solar.’”

Locally, the report estimated that Berks County schools could save nearly $12 million over the lifetime of the solar panels by maximizing their installation of rooftop solar, while reducing harmful air pollution like carbon dioxide by nearly 9,800 tons and producing enough energy to power nearly 7,500 homes. Out of all Pennsylvania counties, Berks County ranks in the top 10 for the number of homes that could be powered and the potential lifetime savings from solar on schools.

The PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center also released an interactive map so that Pennsylvanians can see the solar potential for school buildings in their counties. This also helps identify new sources of clean, reliable energy at a time when many local and state officials have recently expressed alarm about increased electricity prices and strains on the electrical grid due to the expansion of AI, data centers and other major energy users.

The study also showed that in Berks County, solar schools could also reduce harmful air pollutants like sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, particulate matter and volatile organic compounds by nearly 100, 1,500, 800, and 200 pounds respectively. Those pollutants have been linked to more severe asthma attacks among children and to premature death.

Schools are often ideal locations for solar energy systems. They usually have big spaces suitable for panels, including flat, unshaded rooftops; parking lots with room for solar canopies; and nearby open spaces such as fields. Because schools can house large solar energy systems, the economies of scale can reduce installation costs.

Solar energy makes economic sense for school districts – especially in an era of rising and increasingly volatile electricity prices. U.S. schools spend around $8 billion on energy costs annually, their second-largest cost after teacher salaries. Solar energy systems are increasingly affordable and can protect school budgets from price spikes.

“The Exeter Township School District is excited about the cost saving opportunities we can pass along to our taxpayers by choosing to install a solar farm at Owatin Creek” said Jason Mell, President of Exeter Township School Board. “This project is estimated to save our taxpayers more than $10 million over the next 30 years. Best of all, our district was able to proceed with this project with minimal upfront costs thanks to generous grants and rebates that our administration worked hard to secure.”

To make it as easy as possible for schools to “go solar” in Pennsylvania, the PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center recommends that local, state and federal officials take commonsense steps, including renewing and expanding the state’s Solar for Schools grant program, restoring federal solar incentives that Congress recently repealed, and implementing parts of Gov. Josh Shapiro’s statewide energy plan.

“As a top ten state for solar on K-12 schools, Pennsylvania schools illustrate how solar delivers both cost savings and hands-on learning opportunities for students,” said Shannon Crooker, Pennsylvania Director, Generation180. “Through the Solar for Schools Grant Program, we have the opportunity to double our solar capacity and save over $5 million annually. And the potential is even greater: PennEnvironment’s research shows that if all 5,000 schools in Pennsylvania adopted solar, schools could collectively save hundreds of millions of dollars while investing in a healthier, more sustainable future.”

“PA is a terrific state for solar,” stated Jim Kurtz, President and founder of RER Energy Group, a Reading-based solar company. “We get more than sufficient sunlight and we have cooler weather on average and lower temperatures are better for solar energy production.”

“Our schools are places where our children go to learn, play, achieve and succeed,” remarked Bellini. “Now they can also be places that help reduce air and climate pollution, save taxpayers money, and lead the way with clean, homegrown energy.”

As originally published on berksweekly.com