Since 2003, the City of Allen has been actively taking steps to reduce the energy consumed by City owned facilities and has developed a strategy to improve our energy efficiency. We have audited our energy consumption, taken a benchmark of our energy usage, and analyzed our energy management practices against other cities in Texas and across the United States. We used this data to identify projects and actions that will allow us to use energy more wisely and save tax payer dollars. One of the energy saving projects identified from the energy audit included the installation of solar photovoltaic modules on the roofs of the existing Municipal Courts/Parks & Recreation (MCPAR) Building and the proposed Service Center. The installation for the photovoltaic system for the MCPAR building began late January and is scheduled to be complete by the end of February. Ninety US manufactured solar photovoltaic modules will be were configured into a 1,600 square foot grid and mounted onto the south facing standing seam metal roof. The 20 kilowatt system is projected to generate about 27,000 kilowatt-hours annually, which is the equivalent of the following (per the EPAs greenhouse gas equivalency calculator): reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 39,020 pounds per year, planting 4.9 acres of trees, taking 3.0 cars off the road, removing 94 pounds of sulfur dioxide from the air per year, and removing 26 pounds of nitrogen oxide from the air per year. As a result of the US Department of Energys (DOE) Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG), which is a part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA or Economic Stimulus Bill), the City has been afforded the opportunity to fund this project completely with federal funds and also anticipates implementing three other energy conservation projects with the grant. These three additional projects include applying ceramic film on the windows at City Hall, retrofitting the lighting system at the Allen Police Department, and installing a 70 kilowatt solar photovoltaic system onto the proposed Shop Building of the Service Center campus. Combined these four federally funded projects will save the City 180,000 kilowatt-hours annually and an estimated $18,000/year.
**This material is based upon work supported by the Department of Energy under Award Number DE-SC0003178**
Post time: Jan-24-2017