A rural school in the US state of Arkansas is helping the environment by utilising green-energy and at the same time saving a huge amount of money. Money that they have now used to boost their teachers' salaries.
Batesville school has placed solar-panels all over a nearby field meaning that electricity can be sourced directly from the Sun's energy. The school district has now saved so much money by using the solar panels that they have been able to raise each teacher's salary by $15,000 per year.
Before the installation of 1,500 solar-panels at the school, the school district was forking out $600,000 per year in electricity costs, now they produce so much energy that they are actually feeding it back out into the electric grid.
Low teacher salaries in the region had resulted in a large number of teachers leaving the area to seek work elsewhere, or taking second-jobs, leaving only the most dedicated behind, but it was after an internal audit that the school district came up with the idea to transform the school's finances, and save the environment at the same time. They calculated that over 20 years, the school district would save $2.4 million.
The improvement in teacher salaries has attracted more educators to the region and the school now boasts one of the highest salaries for teachers in the state.
Megan Renihan, who is communications coordinator for the Batesville School District, said of the money saved with the solar-panels:
"That money is going to continue to go back into our teachers' salaries. That's the whole goal. We want to be the best in the area for teachers, because that means that our kids are getting the best."
Jeanne Roepcke, one of the teachers who received a raise, said:
"Nope. No, it would not have been one of the things that I thought. But, what a great idea. The sun is going to be shining anyway, so why not cash in on that?"
In the United States, there is now heavy investment in renewable energy, including solar-power. Despite this, only around 11% of all the United States' energy needs are currently met through renewable sources. Thankfully, the cost of investing in renewables has fallen dramatically in recent years leading more and more companies and homes to begin making the green investment. As can be shown from the case at hand, the move to renewable energy can also save huge amounts of money in the long-run.
[h/t: IFL Science]
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