My thoughts on the school roof solar plan

There was a story in this morning’s Record Journal (Friday April 27, 2012) titled Council passes school roof solar panel plan.

I voted in support of this plan for at least the two high schools but there was an option on the table to do the two middle schools in town as well.

There were funds from DEEP that can be applied for by the town. Wallingford could fund the solar panels through fines levied against Covanta by the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. Councilor Fishbein brought up the point and said DEEP may give the fines, totaling more than $400,000.00, to the town for energy conservation projects.

The money is there to grant but only if there are these energy conservation projects to claim against.

The council discussed adding solar panels to the two high schools, which would add $120,000.00 to the project after receiving nearly 50 percent reimbursement from the state. If we went for all four the cost would have been about twice that.

All of that remaining cost, after the 50 percent reimbursement from the state, could have been paid for out of that $400,000.00 Covanta fine.

So basically, if we applied for and received the fine award of $120,000.00 there would be no cost for the panels for the two high schools. If we went for all four schools we could have gotten the same.

The reduction in energy expenditures realized from the use of the system and the resulting energy bill reductions would be a direct savings to the school system and those monies, potentially, could be directed to other expenditures within the schools – perhaps things slated to be cut or things that otherwise went unfunded.

Unless we have other, future, energy conservation projects to make claims against the funds will end up not being used and the monies could be potentially lost to other entities that have some rights to the Covanta fine (as applicable to them).

To me, that is a lost opportunity and I am disappointed that others did not see it the same way. 

I will take it in consolation that we did get two of the schools but we are leaving behind that additional money and I do not believe we will have the same opportunity in the future to apply for the funds again.

Maybe I’m wrong about that – guess we’ll see.