Schools study how to cut energy use

New law requires 5 percent energy savings each year.

By Molly Bloom
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Tuesday, October 09, 2007

A new law has Texas schools scrambling to find ways to cut energy use. Many have started by dimming the lights and keeping an eagle eye on the thermostat, but at least one small-town school district is worried that it could be forced to limit community groups' usage of campus buildings in order to meet that goal.

The law, which took effect last month, requires school districts and other public agencies to adopt a goal of cutting their electricity use by 5 percent a year for six years. The conservation measure is included in a larger energy-efficiency bill authored by state Rep. Joe Straus, R-San Antonio.

Supporters say the new law will help focus attention on energy use in schools. Districts only have to say they'll try to use less electricity; they don't have to actually take steps to reach that goal. And they don't face any penalties for missing the goal.

The director of the Texas Energy Conservation Office, Dub Taylor, said that existing laws that require some state agencies, counties, cities and other governmental entities to pledge to reduce energy use and issue regular reports on progress toward that goal have resulted in changes across the state, particularly in agencies that might not have focused on energy conservation before.

"Reducing electricity consumption and making prudent investments ... is a bottom line issue," Taylor said. "What public entity is not interested in that?"

But administrators in some school districts say they've already worked hard to reduce their energy use and are stuck searching for cost-effective ways to meet the goal to cut even more.

"The further we go along the learning curve, the harder it is to find meaningful ways to reduce, especially in an expanding district," Pflugerville school district Maintenance Director Bill Clayton said.

In Elgin, a 3,000-student district about 20 miles east of Austin, cutting energy use might mean limiting community use of school buildings that are among the area's few large public gathering places, said Assistant Superintendent Kreis Alyea.

"This requirement could severely limit the use of our facilities by the taxpayers who built them," Alyea said. "In smaller towns, school buildings and facilities are the only ones available."

Elgin has already taken steps to manage its energy use, Alyea said. The district has replaced all lighting with low-voltage fixtures; used high-efficiency heating, cooling and ventilation units in new construction; installed digital temperature controls; and hired two employees to keep up with heating and cooling system maintenance.

The district took out low-interest state loans to pay for the conservation measures, Alyea said. It has no plans to borrow more.

"If the state places a priority on this, they should fund it," he said.

The 12,000-student Hays school district has had a "very aggressive" energy management program since 2002, said R.C. Herrin, the district's executive director of operations. In the past five years, the district has cut its electricity use per square foot nearly 40 percent, including in new construction, Herrin said.

Hays has replaced light bulbs that were brighter than necessary, installed motion sensors to trigger lights, and centralized and digitalized control of air conditioning, Herrin said. Environmental benefits aside, the district has saved hundreds of thousands of dollars on its electricity bill, which totaled about $2 million in the 2006-07 school year, Herrin said.

The new state law will put a little more oomph behind the district's efforts to control its energy use, Herrin said. But it won't necessarily change energy-saving steps Hays was planning to take anyway.

"It's your most controllable cost that you have, and it's one of your highest costs," Herrin said of utility services. "It is something that we need to be looking at all the time."

The Austin school district expects to save $12 million over the life of new schools designed to comply with Austin Energy's Green Building Program. Campuses were built to take advantage of natural sunlight, have rainwater collection systems and were constructed using salvaged materials.

Del Valle already plans to use money from its May bond package to install a central, digital system to control air conditioning and lighting for all campuses. San Marcos has already installed a similar system and has a five-page policy on energy conservation rules.

Trustees for several Central Texas school districts, including San Marcos and Round Rock, approved resolutions setting 5 percent energy restriction goals last month.

Public agencies might be interested in cutting costs, but some of their constituents aren't very happy when conveniences and services they've taken for granted are cut, too.

When the Leander school district announced plans to save about $100,000 a year on electricity bills last year by banning refrigerators, microwaves and other personal appliances from classrooms, teachers were outraged.

In Elgin, Alyea says that saving about $50,000 a year by locking the school doors after class could provoke a similar outcry.

Responding to those complaints, Alyea said, isn't worth $50,000.

New energy conservation law

Requirements include:

• Post utility bills online. Applies to counties, cities, public colleges and universities, and other government entities.

• Pledge to reduce electricity consumption 5 percent a year for six years. Applies to most counties, cities and other governmental entities; most state agencies; most public colleges and universities; and all school districts.

• Report on energy conservation progress. Applies to most counties, cities and other governmental entities; most state agencies; and most public colleges and universities.

• Use energy-efficient light bulbs. Applies to counties, cities and other governmental entities; state agencies; school districts; and public colleges and universities in classrooms and dormitories only.

Other provisions include:

• Requiring the Public Utility Commission to inform school districts about financing for the installation of solar electric generation panels.

• Creating a Memorial Day sales tax holiday for energy-efficient appliances.

• Reviewing residential and commercial building codes for energy-efficiency standards.

• Creating incentives for electric utilities to offset their annual growth in demand with energy conservation measures.

mbloom@statesman.com; (512) 392-8750