May 23, 2008
South Puget Sound Community College receives green energy grant
South Puget Sound Community College has received a $96,305 green energy grant from the State of Washington’s Office of Financial Management.
The grant will pay for a 10-kilowatt solar array, which will help power the college’s new natural sciences complex. When the building is completed in October 2008, its main foyer will feature an information kiosk that will explain how the array works and provide a real-time display of how much solar energy is being produced. The building’s electrical room will also include a monitor to track the kilowatt production.
Before receiving the grant for the solar panels, South Puget Sound had already decided to construct the natural sciences complex to Leadership-in-Energy-and-Environmental-Design (LEED) standards. LEED buildings operate with high energy efficiency and minimize waste. The solar panels will add to the complex’s other environmentally friendly features.
South Puget Sound was one of seven Washington colleges to receive a green energy grant this year. Funding for the green energy grants came from the state’s 2007-09 operating budget, which set aside $1 million for each fiscal year. State agencies that were already building or renovating buildings could apply for the grant. An interagency committee scored the applications to determine which were expected to provide the best value.