Community Consolidated School District 46 in Grayslake, Ill., has begun construction of a solar energy project at four schools.
Ground-mounted solar panels will be installed at Frederick and Prairieview schools, and roof-mounted panels will be installed at Park Campus and Grayslake Middle School.
In total, the four photovoltaic arrays will generate 2.4 megawatts of clean energy and provide 2,940,000 kilowatt hours of power to the grid. The project is expected to be complete later this year.
“This is a very exciting project for us," says Ellen Correll, District 46 Superintendent. "Not only will we be addressing environmental needs and concerns, we will also be providing both a savings and a revenue source for future years in our district. An added bonus will be for our students—they will be able to analyze data in relationship to solar power and make predictions regarding energy and its effect on our environment.”
The district stands to potentially net $6.75 million over 30 years from the array, as well as capitalize on rebates offered by the electric utility.
The energy produced by the solar array is equivalent to the electricity needed to power an estimated 329 homes in a single year. The project will reduce greenhouse gases by 2,196 metric tons, equivalent to taking 470 cars off the road for a year.
The district entered into an energy savings performance contract with Performance Services, which installed solar arrays for the area's high school district.
