Jasper Junior/Senior High School will soon be able to tap into the sun鈥檚 energy thanks to a $125,000 grant to install 208 new solar panels on its roof.
The announcement by Grande Yellowhead Public School Division (GYPSD) caught a lot of people by surprise, including the Jasper Sustainability Club for Youth, which had originally planned to install 45 panels in March 2016.
鈥淭he superintendent was really excited about this project and wanted it to be as significant as possible so he pushed for more,鈥� said Magda Mahler, a former committee member with the Jasper Sustainability Club for Youth.
鈥淭o my knowledge it will be the largest solar panel array on any school in Canada.鈥�
The club, which is pitching in $20,000, initially wanted to install six solar panels on the school鈥檚 roof as a teaching tool, but after further discussions between the school and the division they decided to expand the project so it would have a bigger impact.
At the time the division promised to pay for the installation if the sustainability club purchased 39 more panels, which was estimated to cost around $18,000.
Fast-forward to today and the plan is to now install 208 solar panels or the equivalent of a 70-kilowatt system on the roof of the school鈥檚 gymnasium. The original six panels will also be installed as part of the overall project.
鈥淭he whole purpose of the sustainability club was to inspire the younger generation to be more sustainable and be more interested in sustainable energy and focus on environmentalism so to see something actually come out of the work that we did is really rewarding,鈥� said Cameron Mahler, a former student involved with the Jasper Sustainability Club for Youth.
The cost savings from the project are currently unknown, however students will be able to monitor the school鈥檚 energy consumption and production.
鈥淎n education display unit will be located in the school鈥檚 student gathering area so that students can actively monitor the school鈥檚 energy consumption and production per panel,鈥� superintendent Cory Gray wrote in a press release.
鈥淛asper High is the perfect facility to place this sustainability project as their students have a long history of passionate advocacy for the environment. We will be working with the students and staff at the high school in developing an experiential learning action plan for the upcoming school year now that we have the full approval from Alberta Education for the project.鈥�
The project got going in 2013 when a former high school student won $10,000 worth of solar panels鈥攅quivalent to six panels鈥攖hrough a contest organized by Enmax Energy Corporation.
At the time, the Jasper Sustainability Club for Youth intended to use the panels for a sustainable classroom, but due to increasing costs the club was unable to raise enough money so the club decided instead to install them on the school鈥檚 roof.
A large reason why this project was able to get off the ground was because of the division鈥檚 foresight in 2014 to build the joint school facility with the necessary infrastructure to support geothermal and solar power energy.
The infrastructure was included at the request of the sustainability club, which was involved in the planning and design of the school and had originally hoped the facility would become the province鈥檚 first net-zero school.
鈥淚 think a project like this really demonstrates we are doing our best to make a difference and we really do care about the environment,鈥� said Cameron.
Paul Clarke
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