Danvers Finalizes Solar Panel Plan For 3 Schools

DANVERS, MA — The town of Danvers is finalizing plans outlined to the School Committee this summer to have solar panels placed on three school roofs capable of producing enough energy to power about 400 households through the existing municipal power grid.

Danvers Electric is calling the agreement with Solect Energy "Danvers Schools Go Solar" to put the panels on Highland Elementary, Smith Elementary and Danvers High School as part of an initiative to reduce the town's carbon footprint and promote clean, renewable energy sources.

Danvers Assistant Electric Utility Director Clint Allen told the School Committee in August that the installation process would take about six months and "have very little impact on the day-to-day operations of the schools."

He said the schools were chosen because of the age of the roofs and the proximity to the existing electricity grid.

"The way we've set up this arrangement is that it's directly fed back into the Danvers grid and metered. So we're essentially buying that wholesale electricity at the point of delivery right on the schools and it goes into our system," Allen said.

As part of the project, Danvers Electric will be installing information kiosks in the lobbies of all schools that will display information about the system output and its impact on offsetting carbon emissions.

Information will be shared through social media, with each school hosting information sessions with students on climate change and the role of renewable energy production in mitigating future climate change.

"The town is excited to continue its journey toward a greener and more environmentally conscious community," town officials said on Monday.

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. X/Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)