The first annual quarter of St. Petersburg Catholic High School (SPCHS), Inc.’s energy efficiency program (EEP) is complete and the results have been exemplary thus far. Installation of energy conservation measures (ECMs) was completed in December of 2010 at both the school and the nearby Salesian Residence. Featuring solar hot water heaters and efficient lighting fixtures, these renovations have already begun paying dividends. Through April of 2011, SPCHS has seen a 27% decrease in water usage and a nearly 20% decrease in electricity consumption, outperforming their preliminary savings estimates.
The Energy Efficiency Program included the replacement of nineteen inefficient air conditioners and furnaces with energy efficient 15 SEER heat pumps, installation of two solar domestic hot water systems for the school cafeteria and the priests’/brothers’ residence, installation of insulation above the classrooms in two buildings and at the priests’/brothers’ residence, replacement of lighting fixtures with energy efficient lighting, low-flow toilet installation, and controls for other domestic hot water heaters that limit their energy consumption when not in use.
At this rate, these improvements will not only pay for themselves over the course of the 10-year energy efficiency program, but they will also make possible approximately $10,000 in savings in operations and maintenance costs annually, which emphasizes the fact that projects such as these make sense from a fiscal standpoint as much an environmentally conscious one.
Financing for the project has been provided by the Roman Catholic Diocese of St. Petersburg.
