By Samaia Hernandez
Record-Journal staff
shernandez@record-journal.com
(203) 317-2266
WALLINGFORD — From classrooms scorching at 80 degrees to equipment set to run overnight to boilers nearing their life expectancy, the town’s public schools are a far cry from being energy efficient.
But now that an energy-consulting firm is wrapping up an audit of the 12 schools, it will be up to the Board of Education to decide if it wants to invest in efficiency now for cost savings farther down the line.
Nxegen, a Middletown based energy services company, is completing an energy audit of all buildings, a combined 1,076,482 square feet. Last week, consultant James Redden presented the first of two reports detailing the outcome of the audit, recommending nine measures the district can implement for a cost of about $1.4 million that would save it roughly $500,000 a year with a payback average of three years.
The initial focus of the audit was on immediate areas that could easily be written into next year’s school budget, such as readjusting set points or equipment control panels and installing or repairing boiler plants.
In December, the firm will present a final analysis, including long-term measures such as renewable energy and bringing natural gas into the schools . The idea is to create a multi-year road map toward energy efficiency.
“We definitely are considering and really prioritizing from the audit, what we may potentially be able to incorporate,” said School Superintendent Salvatore Menzo, who will begin meeting with administrators this week to begin preparing next year’s budget. According to the study, which included detailed information provided by School Grounds Supervisor Darren Novak and began last year under former Superintendent Dale Wilson, all 12 buildings fall short of efficiency, with six trailing furthest behind: Dag Hammarskjold and Moran middle schools, Cook Hill, E.C. Stevens and Highland elementary schools and Sheehan High School.
Sheehan, with the largest area, consumes the most energy, averaging $488,790 for electricity and fuel annually, followed by Lyman Hall High School at $444,020. Classroom at Dag are occasionally warmed to 80 degrees, well past the set point of 68.2.
“The heating energy in these schools is out of whack,” said Redden, who suggested replacing heating boilers at Moran, Sheehan, Dag, Moses Y. and Rock Hill. He also recommended installing display devices on heat ventilators and rooftop units to reduce speeds and temperatures during nights and off days as well as replacing windows to keep heat indoors.
School officials said they are interested in being creative about procedures, possibly by training current staff members or hiring someone to monitor controls. “Maybe we need to hire someone for 20 hours a week,” said school board Vice Chairman Thomas Hennessey, a member of the Wallingford Energy Conservation Commission.
The audit is a result of the commission, formed last year and led by Town Council Chairman Michael Brodinsky. With 12 active members, including state Rep. Mary M. Mushinsky, it began with the mission of saving the town money by saving on energy costs and reducing the carbon footprint. After several meetings, the focus quickly became the town’s largest real estate holder: the school board.
The commission signed on for a large task without a budget, but Bill Leahy, director of the Institute for Sustainable Energy signed off on creating a benchmarking report at no cost and Mike Cassella of the Connecticut Municipal Electric Energy Cooperative also came on board to offer assistance. In August, the Public Utilities Commission gave $40,000 from its energy conservation programs to fund the audit.
“It started as just an idea: How can we save money by saving energy?” Brodinsky said. “Because of persistent hard work and the cooperation and effort of so many people, we are on the verge of a historic breakthrough for the town. We are close to implementing a coordinated energy plan for the first time in our history.”
The audit did not include lighting as the district is undergoing a lighting retrofit program during the summers to upgrade all its buildings. The town received a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy last summer for the program. Half the buildings have been upgraded so far.
“Obviously money is extremely tight, but hopefully there are some initiatives that we’ll be able to do out of this audit,” Hennessey said.
School officials are also interested in researching available grants, which might help with the effort and Richard Hendershot, general manager of the town’s Electric Division, said the division would match any offer from the Connecticut Clean Energy Fund.
“Now it’s going to be up to the Board of Education and the Town of Wallingford to see if we want to stop wasting money or if we want to continue to waste money,” Brodinsky said.
Tags: audit, conservation, efficiency, energy, Schools, Wallingford
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