The Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction announced today a grant program funded by the state Legislature will direct nearly $17 million to 59 school districts in Washington State to complete necessary energy-related projects in school facilities. Pierce County schools are slated to receive approximately $2.25 million. The projects include upgrades to heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems, repair and upgrade of controls, and replacement of inefficient lighting. Districts were notified last week about their applications. To qualify for the funds, districts were required to conduct audits of the school facilities to identify projects that could demonstrate guaranteed energy savings. The districts also had to show what local financial resources they had for the project.

The breakdown of Pierce County grant money is as follows:

Bethel School District — $350,000
Clover Park School District — $320,000
Fife School District — $500,000
Peninsula School District — $500,000
Tacoma School District — $500,000
University Place School District — $87,140
TOTAL — $2,257,140

A third source of money, about $6.6 million, will come in the form of utility incentives, which are provided by utility companies to homes, schools and business for projects and purchases that reduce energy consumption. The combination of state grant funds, district funds and utility incentives will total about $43.3 million in construction projects in 23 counties around the state.

The projects will save an estimated $2.1 million in energy costs each year. In units of energy — primarily electricity and natural gas — the savings can be compared to the annual energy use in 2,700 average Washington homes.

This grant program is administered by the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. The office received 81 grant applications.

For a complete list of grant recipients, click here — http://www.k12.wa.us/Communications/PressReleases2009/EnergyGrantRecipientList.pdf .