Our schools struggling to go green
Ontario wants them to save energy, but our boards get mixed grades for their initiatives
WATERLOO REGION — Ontario has called on schools to burn less natural gas and use less electricity to help fight climate change.
But progress toward greener schools is uneven, complicated by leaky buildings, aging equipment, funding constraints and green energy missteps.
The efficient use of energy is meant to restrain global warming.
The province has directed school boards to publicize energy conservation plans.
But it has not compelled boards to set targets or meet them.
This year the province provided schools with $200 million to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This includes $5 million that went to local schools.
But progress is uneven:
• Ontario schools on average used just two per cent less energy in 2015 than four years earlier, according to provincial data that’s adjusted for weather to allow comparisons over time. Energy use spiked and ebbed between those years.
• Schools in Waterloo Region trimmed energy use by five per cent on average between 2011 and 2015, provincial data reveal. This above-average result masks uneven progress: 91 education buildings got greener while 80 education buildings used more energy or saw no change.
• Weather-adjusted data from local school boards show 104 schools are using less energy than they did up to eight years ago.
But 58 schools used more energy.
Ontario’s first Green Party MPP wants the province to direct schools and the broader public sector to set energy-reduction targets that are big enough to meet Canada’s international commitment to fighting climate change.
“Climate change is one of the biggest crises we’re facing right now,” said Mike Schreiner, elected June 7 in Guelph.
“I certainly support targets ... and having us achieve those targets.”
“I would prefer not to have a penalty. I would prefer to use incentives to help schools achieve their target.”
The Waterloo Region District School Board claims its average energy use fell 21 per cent at elementary schools and fell 12 per cent at high schools over eight years.
That’s generated annual energy savings estimated at almost $3 million.
“I think we are doing relatively well,” said Lou Lima, the board’s environmental services manager. The reported reduction mixes 90 schools that are getting greener with 21 schools that are getting dirtier.
Solar panels are among the bumps along the way.
The public board mounted solar panels on five school roofs in 2011 to promote Ontario’s push into green energy.
By the rate these panels generate electricity, it will take almost 21 years to recover $1 million in installation costs funded by the province.
That’s three to seven times longer than the typical payback sought for an energy upgrade.
This is partly because flat school roofs, filled with equipment, aren’t the best at capturing the sun’s energy. “You want a south-facing slope roof,” Lima said. “We don’t have a lot of sloped roofs.”
On average Waterloo Catholic District School Board elementary schools are using nine per cent more energy than they did three years ago, while its high schools use 15 per cent more. That’s adjusted to normal weather conditions, to compare over time.
This is happening even as education trustees spend millions on energy-related upgrades and promote a plan to trim energy use by one per cent a year until 2023.
“We want to meet our target. It is unfortunate that it went up and there are a lot of factors,” said Elena Weber-Kraljevsk, the board’s energy conservation officer.
Surging enrolment may play a role. The Catholic board has added almost 2,500 students over four years, filling schools with more students who use more energy.
“There are schools which will be reviewed to assess why energy consumption is not within expectations,” board treasurer Shesh Maharaj said. He expects a new maintenance program that starts in the fall will improve energy efficiency.
Three strong energy achievers in this region include Blair Road Public School, John Mahood Public School and Country Hills Public School.
These middle-aged schools built between 1953 and 1976 have seen high-efficiency upgrades in heating and ventilation.
The schools replaced their single-pane windows and installed automated systems to control building functions.
With green upgrades, these schools reduced their average energy use by 42 per cent between 2008 and 2017, the public school board reports.
Three energy failures in the region include Prueter Public School, Queen Elizabeth Public School and Crestview Public School.
These are middle-aged schools built between 1952 and 1966. Prueter has seen upgrades, including a new boiler in 2001 and some new windows last summer. But its automated systems are weak and much of its equipment is original.
Queen Elizabeth lacks automated equipment. Its boiler is 23 years old. Crestview is still heating with its 1966 boiler and uses original classroom ventilators. Automated systems control only a small part of the school, which is scheduled for upgrades.
These three schools saw their average energy use climb 25 per cent between 2008 and 2017, the public school board reports.
It’s the practice of the public board to seek energy upgrades when schools are renovated for other reasons. “I don’t think we would do an energy-efficiency upgrade just for energy efficiency. We’ve always combined it with other measures,” Lima said.
Ontario launched a long-term strategy to reduce energy consumption in public buildings in 2009. It implemented a database to track energy use across 5,500 buildings over time.
Actions related to this strategy are on hold until the incoming Progressive Conservative government is in place, a Ministry of Education spokesperson said.