Edwardsville School District turning to solar energy

ST. LOUIS, Mo. (KMOV) - The Edwardsville school board voted this week to approved the issuance of $13 million dollars in bonds to pay for the installation of solar panels on school buildings. The district plans to install collections of solar panels in 10 places on 7 buildings.

Some taxpayers in the district were uncomfortable with the initial cost but others saw the long range benefits.

“I think long term as an investment it sounds like a good idea,” said Jackie Toigo.

Stephanie Crouch told First Alert Four, ‘I think anything we can do to harness the power of the sun and nature is fantastic.”

The district estimates the use of solar energy will lead to 40-60% savings on electric bills over the 30 life of the panels.

According to Generation 180′s 2022 Solar Schools Report, the number of schools powered by solar energy has tripled since 2015. And an estimated 6-million students attend solar powered schools.

The school district’s decision is part of a proliferation of solar panels in the region.

Debbie Evans installed solar panels on her Edwardsville house in March. She said she has no regrets.

“It is a no brainer. There’s no maintanence, you do nothing and it’s cheap,” she said.

The company Evans went with didn’t have an upfront cost, instead she’ll pay $111.84 a month for 25 years to lease the panels. She said the solar panels have saved her money.

“Big time, big time. Probably this summer I saved $250 to $300 a month on electricity,” said Evans.

This week Amazon announced plans to install a solar farm in Warren County. It’s estimated the project will have a $34 million dollar impact and the solar farm is projected to be operational in 2026.

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