A team of high school students and faculty, as well as community volunteers, wants to build a solar generator like the array in this artist's conception.
The 1.1 kilowatt solar electric generator is designed to demonstrate the feasibility of and ease of generating electricity from solar energy at the high school. This project is also intended to kindle awareness of current climate change issues and reinforce the need for energy conservation.
The demonstration solar electric system will be mounted on an alcove over the front of the high school and will be seen by students, faculty, parents, and community members who use the high school. To that end the team has applied for a $10,900 grand from Northwest Clean Air Agency to fund the project.
This demonstration project, which is expected to generate 1100 kilowatt-hrs of electricity each year, will also serve as the foundation for several class curriculums in Physics, Advanced Placement Environmental Studies, and Principles of Technology.
The faculty and students hope to create a real time data Web site, monitor the system’s performance, setup a real time display case in the halls, and perform energy audits. The hope of everyone is that this project will provide the incentive for the school and community to make a stronger effort to conserve energy and shrink our collective carbon footprint.
A high school student actually started the project in 2007. She assembled a team and applied for a grant from the Bonneville Environmental Foundation, but the funding source changed and AHS was no longer eligible for that funding.
Now the group has applied to the Northwest Clean Air Agency for a grant.