Geothermal energy systems paying off big for school districtsJul 19 - McClatchy-Tribune Regional News - Phyllis Coulter The Pantagraph, Bloomington, Ill.The sizzling temperatures aren't bothering students in a summer gymnastics program at Oakdale Elementary School, nor do they affect staff working at Olympia North Elementary School in Danvers. Both buildings are in school districts that pioneer use of geothermal energy systems, using heat pump systems and energy from the ground to heat and cool the buildings. Such systems were rare a decade ago, but they are working well and have been worth the initial investment, school leaders said this week. "They provide an environment that is conducive to learning," said Olympia Superintendent Andrew Wise. "And do it cost effectively," added Assistant Superintendent Josh Olsen. In 2001, Olympia High School near Stanford was one of the first schools in Illinois to get a geothermal system. The "open loop system" used water from the Mahomet Aquifer. "They've come a long way," said Scott Thornton, Olympia's director of maintenance. A closed-loop system -- in which water is confined to a well field on the premises -- has been used in McLean County Unit 5 schools starting in 2006 and in Olympia's elementary schools in Danvers and Atlanta since 2008. The systems don't use fossil fuels and are low maintenance. "That's not true with a lot of other equipment," Thornton said. Bruce Boswell, Unit 5's energy manager, agrees. He and now-retired maintenance and construction manager Jeff Monahan initially worried maintenance costs would be high but their concern proved unfounded. After research, the half-century-old Oakdale and Glenn elementary schools, both in Normal, became the first closed-loop geothermal schools in Illinois in 2006, Boswell said. Oakdale has had very few problems with the system in its first seven years, confirmed custodian Roger Nichols, noting the biggest challenge was time. "It was a little dicey," he said, because workers had to tear out boilers and equipment, install the well fields and new equipment. Unit 5 has geothermal systems in 10 schools, including its three newest, ridding the district of "have and have-not" schools where poor heating or no air conditioning might affect learning, Boswell said. Each classroom has its own control switch and heat pump, so one room could have heat, another air conditioning and another open windows. "That's the good news. That's hopefully being very responsible to the taxpayer," Boswell said. Geothermal technology and other energy-saving practices save the district about $1 million a year. Unit 5 paid about $3 million in utilities in 2004-2005. The cost remained the same in 2011-12, despite three new schools, about 2,200 more students, more staff and rising energy costs. http://www.energycentral.com/functional/news/news_detail.cfm?did=29351333 |