Red Hook solar project complete, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and energy expense

Roughly 30% of the Red Hook Central School District’s energy usage will come from solar power harvested on the roof of its school buildings.

The district and its partners celebrated the completion of the $1.7 million solar project with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at Mill Road Elementary School Wednesday.

The implementation of solar energy aligns with the district’s goal of increasing sustainability and reducing its impact on the environment. The 1,200 solar panels now affixed to the elementary, middle and high school buildings will generate more than 630-megawatt hours of energy annually and are expected to generate roughly $80,000 in utility credits annually, while reducing greenhouse gas emissions by nearly 80 metric tons — the equivalent of consuming nearly 9,000 gallons of gasoline.

“One of our goals as a district is to increase our energy efficiency and decrease our carbon footprint,” said Superintendent of Schools Dr. Janet Warden. “In utilizing solar power gathered through solar arrays on each of our school buildings, we’re showing students everybody can be involved in supporting the environment and will perhaps encourage them to take small steps to do so at home. All the while, the project will also reduce energy costs, which aids all district residents.”

The project, which was approved by voters in 2019, was financed by NYPA and the district received grant funding from NYPA and the New York State Energy and Research Development Authority. It was constructed by Solar Liberty. Dr. Warden in her comments thanked both entities for moving the project through a prolonged development period slowed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Red Hook’s new solar energy systems reflect the district’s commitment to sustainability and climate action,” said NYPA President and CEO Justin E. Driscoll. “NYPA is proud to support its public-sector partners with clean energy solutions that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and energy costs.”

NYPA assisted in the design of the systems, which are the first NYPA-supported solar projects in Dutchess County.

The solar system officially has a 25-year lifespan, but it could continue to produce power well beyond that time if properly maintained. At the end of 25 years, it’s estimated the district will have saved $1.175 million.

The project began under former Superintendent Paul Finch, who was on hand to share in the celebration. Referencing the high school Performing Arts Center, he joked, “I just start things, and you all finish them.”

Of the project itself, he said, “It’s just part and parcel of how Red Hook is culturally, that we operate in a way that we try to do best by kids and our community. In my experience we’ve always tried to find a balance between looking towards the future and, in this case, certainly this project is modeling the implementation of new technologies in a thoughtful manner, and at the same time trying to protect the interests of our taxpayers, who are often stretched thin.”

NYPA Director of DER Ben Cuozzo and Solar Liberty Vice President of Sales and Marketing Rob Gauchat. spoke at Wednesday’s event, as did Red Hook Village Mayor Karen Smythe and Red Hook Town Supervisor Robert McKeon.

Ben Hoen, a district parent who served as a special advisor throughout the project, shared the concept dated back to 2011, when he and Finch sat at a windy soccer game and discussed the possibility of harnessing renewable energy.

“There’s an oft-repeated mantra, ‘think globally and act locally,’ and the school did both in this case,” said Hoen, a scientist for Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory who studies wind and solar energy. “Of the total cost of this project, 82% went to businesses and workers in the New York region. That is acting locally.”

He said the district has provided the students “a tactile way to see how persistence and forward thinking can, in the end, make a big difference.”

The solar project is one of several ways in which the Red Hook district is making environmentally conscious changes.

This summer the district also completed installation of a new HVAC system in Red Hook High School, which is expected to save as much as 12% on energy use in that building, and most of the windows were replaced in the high and elementary schools to improve energy efficiency. In May, voters approved the district to purchase two electric school buses, the first step in the goal of replacing its entire fleet with electric vehicles by 2035.

Dr. Warden said the solar panels “serve as an example of our students in action and to understand clean energy is really important and has an impact on our community.”