Solar panel project at Jasper Junior/ Senior High School
Grande Yellowhead is pleased to announce that they have received approval of a $125,000 grant from the Province for the installation of a 70 kilowatt solar panel system at Jasper Junior/ Senior High School. Trustee Betsy DeClercq is thrilled at the news. “Although we didn’t have the funding at the time of construction in 2014 for the installation of solar panels, we were fortunate to have the ability to include the infrastructure needed for a future project. And the future is now!”
The installation of solar panels on the high school has been a dream realized thanks to the dedicated and passionate efforts of many, especially the Jasper Sustainability Club for Youth (JSCY). JSCY aligned their passion for sustainability and environmental stewardship in advocating and fund-raising for a SEED building at their school. Due to increasing costs, the Club was unable to raise sufficient funds to purchase the standalone classroom and re-directed their efforts and funds on educating youth on their vision of a more sustainable future as well as developing projects that support their learning in this field. In 2013, a student JSCY member won six solar panels that have been in storage with the division until a complete project could be funded and then installed at the high school. In the fall of 2016, Grande Yellowhead began collaborating with the Province on possible interest in a solar panel project with a direct experiential learning focus. Six months later Jasper High will be the proud owner of 208 new solar panels to connect to the JSCY’s six panels plus a financial donation of $20,000 from the Club. The system is to be installed covering the entire roof of the high school gymnasium over the next few weeks and although the actual savings are unknown at the present time, part of the students’ excitement is the public monitoring capability of the system which can be viewed on a daily, weekly and monthly basis.
“An educational display unit will be located in the school’s student gathering area so that students can actively monitor the school’s energy consumption and production per panel,” noted Superintendent Gray.
“This system can also be viewed online as well as a mobile app is available for students to download. Jasper High is the perfect facility to place this sustainability project as their students have a long history of passionate advocacy for the environment. We will be working with the students and staff at the high school in developing an experiential learning action plan for the upcoming school year now that we have the full approval from Alberta Education for the project.”