On a warm and muggy July day, nothing cools me off like a swim in a pool. Far too soon, though, the steamy days of summer will give way to fall, and the only pools you’ll catch me diving into will be comfortably heated, thank you! Fortunately, the golden rays of the sun can still be part of this picture.

Solar hot water systems may be one of the most cost-efficient and widely used forms of green energy around. And when it comes to heating swimming pools, hot tubs and spas, using solar hot water makes a lot of sense.

After all, many pools and hot tubs at hotels and motels, resorts, schools, colleges and universities, municipal parks, military bases and other facilities are already heated using conventional gas or electric systems. Solar thermal systems can provide up to about two-thirds of the hot water necessary, providing a payback in a matter of a few years.

Take Glen Hills Middle School in Glendale, Wisconsin – a suburb of Milwaukee. As part of an energy efficiency upgrade to the school, a solar system was installed to heat the indoor pool. Pool water is pumped up to the system on the roof where solar panels warm it and send it back to the pool. This reduces the need to run the school’s main boiler, which saves natural gas and cuts greenhouse gas emissions.

With grants from an electric utility and a state government program, plus the roughly $5,000 the district will save annually on its energy bills, the solar system will be paid off in just three-and-a-half years.

“The solar pool heating system is an excellent fit for our district,” says school district operations director Jim Beckman. “It makes a big impact with minimal cash outlay. This approach is beneficial to any district with a pool, but especially to small ones like ours.”

In Gardner, Massachusetts, students at Mount Wachusett Community College are finding that solar hot water systems can be used for more than just making a dip in the campus pool more comfortable.

Back in 2002, environmentally-conscious Mount Wachusett administrators switched to a biomass system to heat campus buildings, but electric boilers were still used to provide hot water. Now, solar panels on the roof of the school heat water that is stored in the existing 1800-gallon hot water tank.

More than $18,000 in incentives from the college’s electric utility helped pay for the solar system, which is part of a package of eleven energy efficiency improvements that will cut campus electricity usage by 15% and save the college more than $129,000 annually.

“Our main goal,” says college president Daniel M. Asquino, “was to reduce the college’s energy bill over time so we could apply the savings to our main mission: educating students.”

These are just two of the many examples illustrating how solar hot water systems are an easy and logical choice for any organization that needs hot water – and what organization doesn’t?

Whether it’s for heating a swimming pool, running washing machines in a laundry operation, or driving an industrial process of some kind, solar hot water systems save money, reduce energy usage, cut greenhouse gas emissions, and provide fast and pain-free paybacks.

The time to jump in is now. The solar hot water is fine!

Another wind turbine may become part of the Barstow landscape, providing an alternate source of power for the city’s wastewater treatment plant.

Johnson Controls Inc., hired by the city in March to conduct an energy analysis of its buildings, proposes installing one-megawatt wind turbine at the wastewater treatment plant. Installing the wind turbine would cost about $3 million.

Read more in the Desert Dispatch. Submit your comments below.

How is your local government utilizing renewable energy?

Wilson County Schools selected Johnson Controls, the global leader in delivering products, services and solutions that increase energy efficiency in buildings, to manage the energy program as part of an energy performance contract.

“This project with Johnson Controls will help us reduce our energy consumption and operational costs while providing our schools with more efficient buildings,” said Mike Davis, Wilson County Director of Schools. “The facility improvements will create a more productive learning environment for students and staff using fiscal responsibility through performance contracting.”

Program Improvements
Facility improvements include the installation of more than 700 heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems in all buildings, and a geothermal heating system at Carroll-Oakland Elementary School. Rain sensor technology will be installed at the athletic fields of five schools to monitor irrigation needs. Additional water conservation measures include the installation of an irrigation well to will supply water to Mount Juliet High School’s athletic fields, reducing the dependence on municipal water for field maintenance.

Infrastructure improvements include the installation of a centralized building management system that will provide facility managers with remote monitoring capabilities and the ability to adjust temperature systems via an Internet connection. Lighting upgrades across all 20 facilities include the addition of more than 1,400 occupancy sensors and upgrades to more than 400 exterior lighting fixtures, as well as the comprehensive lighting retrofitting of four gymnasiums.

“The Wilson County Schools facility management team shares many of the same challenges as others across the state of Tennessee dealing with older, inefficient facilities,” said Joe Bond, K-12 Building Efficiency Consultant, Johnson Controls. “District leadership recognized the opportunity to improve energy usage, upgrade their facilities, and reduce operational costs while enhancing student performance and optimizing staff efficiency.”

Program Funding
The program is being funded through an energy performance contract with Johnson Controls. The contract helps organizations significantly reduce their utility costs and carbon footprint without increasing operating budgets. The cost savings generated will repay the project capital investment over the term of the contract.

Additional funding is being provided by Build America Bonds, taxable bonds designed to reduce municipal borrowing costs through federal subsidies or tax credits; the Energy Efficient School Initiative, which provides funding to schools for energy efficiency projects in Tennessee; and the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Commercial Efficiency Advice and Incentives Program, which supports energy initiatives that reduce power use during peak periods.

Project construction is expected be complete in October 2010.

Greendale High School is the first school in the state to heat both its hot water and pool water with solar power. The changeover should pay for itself and begin saving money in less than four years. It was made possible through assistance from the state’s Focus on Energy program, WE Energies and Johnson Controls. Many other schools and businesses have cut energy costs through these programs.

Read more in News Buzz. Submit your comments below.

How is your school district using renewable energy to power school facilities?

An education may be priceless to some, but downtown Milwaukee real estate comes with a very set cost.

Johnson Controls Inc. and Milwaukee Area Technical College had to weigh the value of both when deciding whether to build a $6.9 million solar education farm in the city. The urban property was convenient for MATC students and created more opportunities, but it required the dedication of downtown property.

Read more in Wisconsin Builder. Submit your comments below.

How is your campus taking advantage of renewable energy?

By signing SB 624 in Green Bay yesterday as part of a package of economic development bills, Governor Jim Doyle has enhanced the power of local governments in Wisconsin to use property assessed clean energy (PACE) financing as a revenue-neutral tool to create jobs, reduce energy bills, and protect the global climate.

The bill expands Wisconsin’s existing legislation so that municipalities can now make commercial and industrial properties eligible to participate in PACE financing programs, in addition to the residential properties covered by legislation passed in May of last year.

PACE programs, also known as tax lien financing programs, allow private property owners or lessees to voluntarily join a “special energy improvement district” in order to finance energy efficiency, renewable energy, and/or water efficiency projects in their buildings through an additional assessment on their property tax bill over the functional life of the equipment (e.g. 5-20 year term).  Building owners typically don’t have the cash for the upfront investments required for such improvements, even if the measures pay for themselves quickly in utility bill cost savings.

The new legislation also makes Wisconsin the second state in the union (after California) to allow water efficiency improvements in buildings to be financed under PACE programs.  This means improvements such as low flow water fixtures or irrigation controls that reduce a building’s water usage could be financed under a special PACE assessment.  Freshwater scarcity is an increasing global concern and water savings also translate to energy savings.  Water and wastewater utilities account for 30-40% of the electricity used by mid-sized cities. This policy leadership will strengthen Southeast Wisconsin’s position as an international hub of water technology.

The bill was introduced by Senators John Lehman and Jim Sullivan; and was cosponsored by Senator Julie Lassa and Representatives Jason Fields, James Soletski and David Cullen in the Assembly. 

To learn more about PACE, visit the Institute for Building Efficiency website.

Construction has started on the largest solar project in the state, in a project led by Milwaukee Area Technical College and Johnson Controls Inc.

The Photovoltaic Educational Farm will be developed on a former landfill along the Milwaukee River, under the television tower for MPTV, Milwaukee Public Television.

Read more in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Submit your comments below.

What is your school doing to help prepare students for the green jobs of tomorrow?

Guam – U.S. Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) Marianas hosted a groundbreaking ceremony Tuesday to mark the start of a solar photovoltaic electricity generating system on U.S. Naval Base Guam. This energy conservation measure (ECM) will install a 250 kilowatt photovoltaic electricity generating system consisting of solar cells that convert sunlight directly into electricity.

“This is really about a commitment by the United States Navy to reduce our dependence on foreign oil,” said Capt. Peter Lynch, commanding officer for NAVFAC Marianas.  “It is a strategic imperative that we reduce that demand from foreign oil products, and that asset that is renewable is something that we want to take advantage of.”

Read more on the Pacific News Center. Submit your comments below.

How is your organization using solar PV and other renewable energy resources?

The U.S. Department of Energy has announced awards of contracts totaling $52.5 million for energy-saving projects, including the installation of renewable-energy systems, at federal sites in nine states.

Called Energy Savings Performance Contracts, the agreements are designed to be paid for over time through guaranteed savings on energy.

Read more on Sunpluggers.com. Submt your comments below.

How has your organization used performance contracting to improve the energy efficiency of facilities?

Here is my list of the top ten Green Giants, the companies most likely to produce, develop and promote the ideas and products that will have the widest ranging effects.

Johnson Controls is participating on the retrofit of the Empire State Building while its battery group received $299 million from the DOE to develop nickel cobalt batteries for hybrids. The joint venture Johnson Controls-Saft makes lithium ion batteries for Ford. The company also likes solar steam.

Read more on CBS News. Submit your comments below.

How does your organization rank in the green economy?