The Sophian

Issue date: 11/19/09 Section: News

In an effort to reduce its contribution to global climate disruption, Smith has made the decision to install solar panels on the roof of the Campus Center. The installation began this week and will be completed in one month.

Dano Weisbord, the environmental sustainability director, said that the college chose the Campus Center for the installation because it is a crossroad on campus and a site with a great amount of visibility. The solar panels will not change the look of the Campus Center, as they will be mounted parallel to the surface of the roof. The pitch of the roof works well for solar collection.

"I think that it's great because colleges on the West Coast have already made steps towards sustainability. Smith can compare to these schools, especially in the day and age when environmental issues are on top of the list of problems in America," Megan Smith '12 said.

The college has signed an agreement with Community Energy Inc., which will own the panels for 20 years. After that time, Smith will either assume ownership of the panels or the panels will be removed from the Campus Center.

Smith is not providing any upfront funding for this project. Instead, Community Energy is paying for the solar panels and the installation. Over the next 20 years, Smith will buy all the power produced by the panels at a fixed rate competitive to what Smith currently pays for electricity. Thus, the college will save money if the cost of electricity rises in the future.

This project has been in progress since last year. It is a cooperation among Facilities Management, the Vice President for Finance and Administration, the Campus Center and the Office of Environmental Sustainability.

The idea of having solar panels on campus is not new. In fact, there is already an experimental thermal array on the roof of McConnell Hall that belongs to the physics department, which provides much of the hot water for that building.

Sasha Hippard '13 suggested that students might like to know the effects of the solar panels. "It'd be nice for the school to provide information on what the panels will be used for and give numbers that reflect, for instance, how much it will reduce our CO2 emissions," Hippard said.

Weisbord said that it is unlikely that the installation will be disruptive to students and hopes that they will support it.

"I think that it's a formidable step towards Smith becoming more sustainable," Claire Solomon '13 said.

Smith is currently creating a plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Early efforts will target energy efficiency and conservation, while in the future, Smith plans to pursue renewable energy sources. The installation of solar panels on the Campus Center will provide a test of this goal.

"Climate disruption will be a defining feature to life in the 21st century," Weisbord said. "These panels will be a small, but important demonstration of what we can do to mitigate its effects."

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