Water bottle refill stations and recycling bins are two highly visible steps the University of North Georgia (UNG) has taken to make its five campuses more sustainable. Utilizing the solar panels on the new buildings of UNG’s Gainesville Campus is the most recent addition.
“We are reusing 62 solar panels on the roof of the Health Sciences building and adding 125 solar power panels to the system,” Adam Strzemienski, assistant director of facilities for capital planning and sustainability, said. “We are also hooking up the solar panel pedestal system behind the Film and Digital Media building.”
The solar panels on UNG’s Gainesville Campus will generate power for the newly incorporated buildings.
“When we applied the costs to repair and hook up the solar panels and install new ones, we realized that we would get a good return on our investment,” Strzemienski said. “Within nine years, the brand-new panels will pay for themselves.”
Saving money was not the sole reason UNG elected to reinvest in the solar panels. Advancing the university’s sustainability initiative was another factor, which came from the Faculty Senate and its solar committee. The Faculty Senate shares governance of UNG by working with the president and administration to recommend policy changes.
“They wanted to explore the feasibility of installing solar power,” Strzemienski said.
