HELiOS and You
The HELiOS Project began as an effort by KyotoUSA and Berkeley residents concerned about climate change who saw an opportunity to turn their concern into local action. We realized that we could reduce local greenhouse gas emissions by encouraging our schools to reduce their energy consumption and facilitating the installation of renewable energy systems on school roofs and parking lots. Doing so would provide a financial benefit to our schools and give us an opportunity to show our children that we were serious about tackling global warming.
HELiOS is a simple concept – a school district pays for a photovoltaic system (PV) with the money it saves from reducing or, in some cases, eliminating its electricity bill. Although the payments for the PV system in the early years are generally greater than the electricity savings, eventually the electricity savings will exceed the value of the payments on the PV system. HELiOS identifies the dollar amount of that “gap” in those early years and shows you how to fill it with the support from the local community, i.e. individuals, businesses, local government, religious community, and other institutions concerned about climate change. In the end, community support makes the PV system cost-neutral to the district from the moment the system is turned on! Our Community Climate FundTM (CCF) is one way to raise the funds needed to close the gap, but keep in mind that each community can design its own approach – the opportunities, like the energy from the sun, are virtually limitless!
HELiOS is best suited for communities served by utilities that provide rebates or incentives to their non-residential customers for energy efficiency improvements and renewable energy systems. Our description of the HELiOS Project is based on our experience in working in northern California where Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) supplies the electricity. If you are located elsewhere in California or in another state, research your local utility's incentive programs before you get started. Local publicly owned utilities (POUs) may offer better incentives than the larger, investor-owned utilities (IOUs). Public schools served by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, for example, are eligible for one of the best rebates in the country - making the "gap" one of the smallest anywhere. A great place to start for information on the latest incentives available throughout the U.S. is with the Database of State Incentives for Renewables and Efficiency (DSIRE).
There are a number of financial options available to purchase or lease PV systems. We recommend that a District purchase its PV system whenever possible. Alternatively, Districts may get a financial benefit from entering into a a Power Purchase Agreement with an investor who is responsible for installing and maintaining the PV system during the contract period.
Links to resources to help create "green" California schools are identified and described on the Tools and Calculators page.
