HSU Joins Statewide Solar Partnership

Humboldt Sentinel
News 10/22/08
By David Courtland

Environmental Resource Engineering students to help install new systems

ARCATA -- Humboldt State University has established two solar energy initiatives, part of a joint program reduce the human carbon footprint.

HSU is installing 300 kilowatts of solar panels on the roof of the University Library and issuing a contract to install a demonstration 12.5 kilowatt photovoltaic panel system on the roof of the Old Music Building.

The solar panels atop the Library will be installed, operated and maintained under a Sun Edison agreement with the California State University system.

The building was chosen for its flat roof, which allows safer installation. Further, the building’s solar window is considered one of the best on campus’s flat-roofed structures, providing superior solar exposure with little shading from trees or adjoining buildings. The installation has a projected life of 25 years.

“Construction is scheduled to begin in a few months,” Tim Moxon, Director of HSU Plant Operations, said. “This is an outstanding proposal partnering students, contractors and the University.”

Power will be sold to the campus under the agreement. The university expects to derive $36,000 in cost savings each year from the energy conservation effort.

Moxon said the roof panels will offset 219 metric tons of carbon dioxide a year.

The Humboldt State solar projects are fused with counterparts at 15 other CSU campuses to bring eight megawatts of green power on line, offsetting almost 9,500 metric tons of carbon dioxide, equivalent to mothballing almost 49,000 cars.

According to the Chancellor’s Office, the system-wide project ensures that more than 20 percent of all CSU power comes from green sources.