Solar panels are newest bright idea from sedGreen committee

PUBLISHED by The Daily Free Press

The School of Education is teaching Boston University how to save money -- and the planet -- from its rooftop with the installation of seven solar panels and a wind turbine, which will make the school run partially on alternative energy, officials said.


The panels and turbine, scheduled to be finished this week, are part of an educational exhibit funded by SED and initiated by a student and faculty committee called sedGreen, said SED science education professor Doug Zook.

"The solar panels will feed into the grid system and give electrical power to the building," he said. "The contribution will be small, but we hope to show educationally that this solar energy is important."

Zook said he thinks other BU schools do not think about environmental issues enough or commit to being more energy efficient. He said he would like to see the university administration invest in more green efforts, such as new heating systems that depend less on oil.

"If the university made a really big commitment, in the long run they would save lots of money," Zook said. "Who knows -- maybe even tuition wouldn't have to rise."

Rachel Leone, BU Environmental Club president, said solar panels are expensive, but because SED is a small building and the panels will not power all its electricity, the savings of using solar energy will eventually make up for the cost.

Leone, an SED senior, said she hopes the initiative "will motivate the rest of the school."

"We have all this roof space that gets wasted . . . roofs are basically absorbing heat and making the city hotter," Leone said. "They're taking advantage of this space."

SED junior Juliana Potts said she thinks the solar panel project is "a really excellent program," because many people are uninformed about alternative energy sources, and other schools and colleges within the university should take similar initiatives.

"It's unrealistic to say BU should be solar powered, but awareness is important," Potts said. "SED is small and many people don't come in here . . . maybe it would be helpful to have it in a bigger place."

Donald DeRosa, an SED science education professor, said he hopes the school can raise awareness on campus and show students BU does care about the environment.

"The use will not change the building significantly. It's an old building and we would need a lot more solar panels and a bigger wind turbine," he said. "But it will be a statement and a concrete example of what needs to be done on campus and the steps to be taken."

DeRosa said the project is especially significant for SED because the next generation of teachers need to be able to pass along the message of global responsibility to their students.

SedGreen has been promoting eco-friendly habits for about a year, including campaigns about recycling and reducing energy consumption, said committee Chairwoman Theresa Redmond.

"I think that colleges and universities are in unique positions where they can set up dormitories and buildings to support green initiatives," Redmond, an SED first-year doctoral student, said. "For students I think that will be a huge draw for [them] if they decide to go there."