Salt River Project Solar for
Schools Program Providing
Solar Energy Systems to Schools Statewide

PHOENIX - November 30, 2009 - Salt River Project (SRP) recently announced 14 Arizona schools have been chosen to receive photovoltaic systems for their rooftops from the SRP Solar for Schools program.

The program will fund the installation and maintenance of 10-kilowatt roof-mounted solar photovoltaic systems. SRP will also provide each of the selected schools with materials and training to educate students about solar energy.

The following schools were selected:

• St. John’s Middle School; St. John’s
• Round Valley Middle School; Eager
• Pendergast Elementary in the Pendergast Elementary School District;
• Tres Rios Elementary and Estrella Vista Elementary in the Littleton Elementary District,
• Combs High School in the J.O. Combs Unified School District,
• Carol G. Peck Elementary in the Alhambra School District,
• Desert Meadows School, Trailside Point School, Cheatham Elementary and Vista Del Sur Traditional School in the Laveen Elementary School District
• Desert Vista High School in the Tempe Union High School District,
• Osborn Middle School in the Osborn School District
•  Ira Murphy Elementary in the Peoria Unified School District

"These systems will allow schools to offset their energy usage while providing a valuable educational tool to their students," said Lori Singleton, SRP Manager of Sustainability Initiatives and Technologies. "SRP's goal in educating students about renewable energy is to teach the next generation of energy users about the clean, renewable sources that provide electricity today and in the future."

Combined, the systems will provide 140 kilowatts of electricity to the Arizona school buildings and will produce approximately 224,000 kilowatt hours of energy per year. The solar energy production will prevent the release of up to 161 metric tons of carbon dioxide per year.

Installation will begin as early as the spring and will be completed by the end of 2010. SRP will provide education resources to educators and students that will provide them with hands-on activities related to renewable energy, math applications for data collected from the PV systems and information on how solar energy works.

 "Combs High School is looking forward to being environmentally responsible and it is expected this project will make significant contributions to protecting valuable resources and the environment for years to come," said J.O. Combs Unified School District Superintendent Jan Langer. "This project will also help educate students, staff and the community about the impact of environmental responsibility."

Pendergast Elementary, the first school in the state to be a green certified school, is already equipped with low-water plumbing and landscaping and utilizes natural daylight for some of its lighting needs, said Pendergast Elementary School District Superintendent Ron Richards.

"This partnership with SRP will enhance our efforts to be green," Richards said. "Our goal to generate 20 kilowatts of energy from renewable sources for this school has now increased to 30 kilowatts thanks to the SRP solar program. The savings we will see from the 30 kilowatts of renewable energy equates to one teacher's salary."