By ROBERT LINNEHAN
Ladies and gentleman, the township will officially be switched “on” tomorrow. Come out to the municipal complex on Monday, May 23 at 6:30 p.m. in meeting room “C” to witness the ceremonial turning on of the township’s solar panel system.
Following the presentation, several solar panel companies will be in attendance to answer questions from residents to see if their homes are right for solar panel systems.
Residents can now keep tabs on just how much money and energy is being culled from the solar panel systems that are chugging away on top of the municipal hall complex, on top of the parks garage, and the Blue Barn in the township.
A monitor in the lobby of the municipal complex at 984 Tuckerton Road keeps a running total of how much energy the system has created and how many credits the township will receive from its system.
“We have solar panels on the municipal building and Blue Barn. Downstairs in our lobby is the monitor showing exactly how these are working and what’s going on,” said Regina Kinney, secretary for the Environmental Commission. “When the commission said they wanted to do this informational program we felt this was the perfect time to let the residents know that the township is on board with this as well.”
The solar panel system has actually been generating electricity in the township since early in 2011. This was more of a ceremonial event, Township Manager Tom Czerniecki said, but it did also serve a purpose.
By the environmental commission holding this informational meeting for township residents about solar power, it put Evesham Township one step closer to reaching its Sustainable New Jersey accreditation. Sustainable New Jersey is a special program in the state that offers grants and other incentives for communities that go green. To achieve the accreditation, townships must earn “points” through special events such as the solar meeting, he said.
Tom Shanahan, the township’s chief financial officer, said the system is going to be very beneficial for Evesham through a fiscal point of view. The entire system, through design and construction, cost about $1.6 million to complete, he said.
However, the township received a grant from the department of energy for $192,000 to help offset the cost.
Each year, Shanahan predicted, the township will be able to save $50,000 annually through not purchasing electricity on the grid. An even larger savings for the township will be the “Solar REC” revenues, or renewable energy credits, that will be made available to the township. This should equal out to about a $200,000 annual savings for the 15 years, he said.
Finally, the township will receive an $800,000 rebate from the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities.
“It was a great deal financially for the township,” he said. “We did very well, and naturally it’s a benefit for the environment that we’re using a renewable energy source.”
