News - Local News

POSTED: Tuesday, Nov. 24, 2009

In tight times, Bellingham and Ferndale schools find ways to save energy

Turning off lights and lowering the thermostat can save people a bit of money over the course of a year. When you multiply that across dozens of buildings in a school district, it can save thousands of dollars.

That's what the Bellingham and Ferndale school districts have done through energy conservation, saving more than $580,000 combined since January 2008.

EARLY EFFORT IN FERNDALE

The Ferndale district was the first to look to energy-savings programs back in fall 2007, when it hired Energy Education Inc. to help audit and monitor energy use. The company provides training, software and support to schools across the country.

Starting in January 2008, the district's energy manager, Tony Torretta, began monitoring electricity, gas and water use at each building. In 2008, the district cut costs by $230,000. For 2009, the district has saved an additional $172,000, and that's just through September.

Ferndale High had the biggest savings. Before the energy program, the school's utility costs ran about $52,700 during January. In January 2009, those costs dropped to about $43,000.

Utility costs at the high school used to run about $15,000 each September. This year, the tab was $12,400.

Teachers and students have helped by turning off lights and computers and by unplugging any appliances not being used. Custodians help by turning on lights only in areas where they're working.

The biggest savings have come from close monitoring and adjusting of heating and air-condition systems. But until the district finds money to replace inefficient windows and heating and cooling equipment, there's a limit to further savings.

"We're looking at grants to take us to the next level," said Aaron Kombol, director of special projects. "We're tapped out on what we can do without putting in capital dollars."

BELLINGHAM WORKS WITH PSE

That's a step Bellingham School District is already taking, by replacing older heating and cooling hardware, including steam traps and ventilation units.

In a partnership with Puget Sound Energy, the utility provided $42,000 to fund part-time resource manager positions, and the district committed to cut its electricity use by 3 percent a year. The district later expanded its program by monitoring its gas and water usage and reducing its garbage bill. During last year school, the first year of the program, the district saved nearly $180,000, compared to the year before.

Energy managers Brett Greenwood and Mike Anderson have asked teachers and students to practice common energy-saving measures, such as turning off lights, unplugging unused electronics, and dressing for the weather. They also tuned boilers, changed light fixtures, and adjusted digital heating and cooling systems to operate only when needed.

For example, at Bellingham High, crews adjusted the heating system to turn on in stages. Heaters on outside walls are turned on first, allowing that heat to radiate through the building, so when corridor heaters are turned on, they don't have to work as hard.

One result: Bellingham High cut its natural gas usage by about 26 percent.

"We had no doubt that it was going to work, we just had to wait for time to pass to prove it," Greenwood said.