Feb 10 2011
Puget Sound Energy (PSE) is providing educational institutions and public schools a chance to bring clean renewable energy into and on the top of the classrooms. A grant application period has been opened for organizations that plan to install small wind power turbines or solar arrays.
Non-profit institutions and schools, which focus on an education based on renewable energy, are entitled to apply for a PSE grant, which would amount to anything from $5000 to $20,000. A total amount of $394,139 has been provided in the form of grants by the Green Power Program and the Renewable Energy Education Program conducted by PSE, and this amount has been used to finance 23 educational solar power ventures in Western Washington during the last seven years. The programs help in expanding the options available for students, educators, communities and families, while promoting knowledge about renewable energy technologies in the nine county utility area run by PSE.
Those applicants who get selected would be given grants for financing renewable energy demonstration and educational projects at their premises. The grant could either be a supplement to an already existing project or it could be used to fund a new renewable energy demonstration system. These grants could also promote real-time, monitoring software based on the web that would facilitate interested community members and students to determine the quantity of energy being generated at any given time. They also supply renewable energy science kits, classroom activity guides, science teacher training, support and educational materials.
The small scale renewable energy demonstration units need no fuel and also need only minimum maintenance and can generate about 900 W to 2 kW, which would be sufficient to power 10 to 20 notebook computers. These notebooks would consume about 33 W for eight hours a day. Its lifespan could be about 20 years. The applicants for the grant should submit plans, which would comprehensively explain their objectives and goals for a wind or solar demonstration project and they must also have employed a PSE energy efficiency program during the previous three years. The applications should have been submitted by March 15, 2011 by 5 pm. During the past year seven PSE schools had obtained an amount of $100,000 for educational materials and solar PV demonstration systems.