LIPA Hosts Back to School Energy Summits for LI Schools
Seeks to Increase Energy Efficiency and Lower Energy Costs
Uniondale, NY--September 19, 2008 – The Long Island Power Authority (LIPA)
yesterday convened the first “Back to School Energy Efficiency Summit” for
Nassau County School Districts at LIPA’s Uniondale headquarters in an effort to
assist districts in becoming more energy efficient and thereby lowering energy
costs. More than 20 Nassau school districts were represented and LIPA has a
second summit scheduled for Suffolk schools on October 3 at the Selden campus of
Suffolk Community College in Selden.
“With the cost of oil nearly ten times higher than it was a mere decade ago,
and with property taxes and energy costs in our region continuing to escalate
and driving young people to more affordable pastures, we must take affirmative
steps to stem the tide and do what we can now to lower energy costs, emphasize
conservation and be cognizant of the impact we as energy consumers have on the
environment,” said LIPA President and CEO Kevin S. Law.
For the last ten years LIPA has worked with hundreds of schools and public
facilities on Long Island through its $355 million clean energy initiative.
Under Law’s leadership, LIPA is poised to embark next year on an efficiency
program that will increase that investment exponentially to nearly a billion
dollars over the next ten years.
LIPA is partnering with the New York Power Authority on their substantial
school efficiency programs in order to maximize the value and increase the
savings for Long Island’s schools. Representatives from NYPA participated in
yesterday’s event by providing information and assistance on the variety of
programs available to Long Island’s school districts under its umbrella.
“You are uniquely positioned to be at the forefront of this movement,” Law
said, addressing district administrators and facilities managers. “Introducing
these concepts to the many thousands of bright young and impressionable minds
that walk through the halls of your facilities every day will surely impact the
future in a positive way. And we can start by partnering to improve the energy
efficiency of your facilities, many of which were built decades ago and without
efficiency and conservation factoring heavily into the designs and operations.
We need 20th Century building designs to give way to 21st Century energy
practices,” Law said.
“This arm of LIPA, which will provide direct assistance to school districts
to plan, develop, and implement energy conservation and creative energy measures
is very welcome,” said Ron Friedman, Great Neck’s superintendent and President
of the Nassau County Council of School Superintendents. “As a number of us have
already seen, we can save considerable dollars, reduce our carbon footprint, and
teach good lessons to our children all at once by the use of new technology and
creative cooperative ways of financing and completing such projects. Having a
‘go to’ person and division of LIPA is of real value to us.”
“We appreciated the opportunity to learn of the activities and assistance
that LIPA and NYPA have available for schools and municipalities to address
energy needs in our community,” said Thomas Markle, Superintendent of the
Seaford Union Free School District. “We look forward to working with
representatives in these organizations to implement solar solutions and to also
provide our students with valuable educational and demonstration experience.”
"I found the Energy Summit to be a valuable opportunity to learn more about
the various programs available from LIPA to help reduce energy costs both in
school and at home,” said Dr. Richard S. Marsh, Superintendent of the Bethpage
Union Free School District. “It was very encouraging to learn that LIPA is
making it a goal to assist school districts with energy audits and performance
contracts to reduce the burdening utility costs facing schools across the
metropolitan area."
“The New York Power Authority is pleased to partner with LIPA in providing
turn-key energy efficiency services to the school districts of Long Island,”
said Angelo Esposito, senior vice president of the New York Power Authority.
NYPA has been a leader in providing energy efficiency services across New York
State and, to date has completed over 1,600 projects with investments in excess
of $1.2 billion. Moreover, we are committed to investing an additional $1.4
billion in energy efficiency and renewables through 2015 in support of Governor
Paterson’s ’15 by 15” Initiative.”
The Back to School Energy Summit marked the first of Law’s formal outreach
efforts to schools to discuss its programs and how LIPA’s partnership with NYPA
in this area can benefit the region.
“We want to make sure that Long Island’s school districts know what LIPA can
do to help them, especially as we prepare to roll out our expanded energy
efficiency program next year,” said Law. “LIPA’s customers and Long Island’s
property taxpayers are one and the same. If we can help schools become more
energy efficient, we will all benefit, while simultaneously benefitting our
environment.”
LIPA’s current Energy Efficiency programs include:
- Prescriptive—which offers incentives for purchasing energy efficient
items from a prescribed list of products, including lighting fixtures,
motors and occupancy sensors.
- Custom—which offers incentives of up to $200,000 for items not on the
Prescriptive list, such as geothermal systems, reflective roofing and
building energy management systems.
- Whole Building—LIPA will work with building owners and their design
teams to develop an energy efficiency plan specifically designed for the
entire building, including up to $400,000 in incentives and assistance.
- Retrofit—which provides up to $200,000 in incentives for customers to
replace equipment before the end of its useful life.
- Energy Audits—LIPA will provide free energy audits for a facility.
- Commissioning—LIPA offers customers up to $50,000 for commissioning
services as an assurance that the energy efficiency measures a customer
installs are working properly.
- Technical Assistance—LIPA provides up to $10,000 in technical assistance
services to help choose and implement energy efficiency measures and
equipment.
- Solar Electric (Photovoltaics or PV)—LIPA will provide rebates of $3.50
per watt for regular commercial customers or $4.50 per watt for schools,
municipalities and not-for-profit customers for installation of approved PV
systems up to 10,000 watts.
- LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design)—LIPA will provide
up to $500,000 in incentives and assistance to a customer’s LEED certified
project.
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