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Solar Panels Will Help County Go "Green"
By Bill McLaughlin
The Ocean County Board of Chosen Freeholders will spend $500,000 on solar panel arrays that will produce all the energy needed to light and heat the county's 43,000-square-foot southern complex in Manahawkin.
The freeholder board made this commitment July 30 at its pre-board meeting following a presentation by PMK Consultants and Birdsall Services Group, local engineering firms.
Ultimately, the board believes that $40,000 a year in savings will result from the expenditure and that there is no risk because the technology is proven and safe. It will produce 62,576 Kilowatt hours from 25 arrays annually.
This is only the beginning of a longrange plan to make every county office, building and complex green-compliant - a two-fold plan to save taxpayers money and mitigate harm to the environment.
The Manahawkin complex houses solid waste management, recycling and Ocean Ride buildings near exit 63 of the Garden State Parkway.
The photovoltaic system will have 10-12 panels on each 25-foot high pole.
"It will pay back (the expenditure) in 10 years and it's safe technology," said Freeholder Director Joseph Vicari. "It comes with a warranty of 90 percent efficiency for at least 20 years."
Vicari, who said the county also would begin to look into windmill technology, added that the county gains solar renewable energy certificates from the state board of public utilities (BPU). Each certificate's present worth is estimated at $600 per megawatt hour.
He said the arrays will look to passersby like the lights at a high school football field. They will be placed on the perimeter of a nearby storm water retention basin in the sparsely-populated area.
Dr. Bruce Greenfield, superintendent of Ocean County schools, told the board there is a growing shared use of services and consolidation in the county.
"Toms River (school) District has been a leader in solar panels," Greenfield said. "They have done very well with that."
He said the district has been eager to share its experience with alternative energies with other districts here and throughout New Jersey.
"It's a cooperative effort where districts want to work with the county and municipalities. A number of (school) districts have hired energy consultants," Greenfield concluded.
Vicari, who is also superintendent of schools in Berkeley Township, said alternative sources will help decrease the use of electricity and save money in the future.
Freeholder Gerry Little said it was "a wise investment" and Vicari said no Pinelands Commission approval is needed.
The so-called green technology is estimated to replace the equivalent of 50 metric tons of carbon dioxide, 5,500 gallons of gasoline and enough electricity to power six homes.
In other freeholder board business, Berkeley's Route 9 congestion problem might get a boost soon with a redesign and extension of Western Boulevard from Northern Boulevard to Route 9.
At the board's open meeting August 6, an ordinance appropriating $1 million for the engineering phase of the plan was introduced.
Also, the county will install security cameras at Miller Air Park immediately thanks to a $150,000 state Department of Transportation Division of Aeronautics grant.
That will allow the field to be monitored from several satellite locations, Vicari said. Since the terrorist attacks seven years ago, electronic gates, magnetic card entry pads and other safety measures have been installed, limiting access to the field.
Two contracts have also been awarded to C&S Consulting for expansion design and an airport layout plan update pursuant to getting state Pinelands Commission approval for the crosswind runway at the airport. The county freeholders will seek Pinelands approval for the improvements next month.
The freeholders also agreed to a Jackson Township ordinance enacted recently to establish no-parking zones on North Hope Chapel Road, a county thoroughfare.
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