Davis School District named Energy Champion
Sep 26, 2024 09:48AM ● By Becky GinosThe Davis School District is leading the way in energy efficiency in K-12 and higher education institutions in the state. The district was named the 2024 Utah AEE Energy Champion for Education Organizations for its decade-long leadership in innovative energy management. The award was presented at the Association of Energy Engineers (AEE) Fall Symposium held last week.
Doug Anderson, Director of Utility Services for the Davis School District was a featured presenter at the symposium.
“The association contacted me and wanted me to present on zero energy,” he said. “I talked about Odyssey Elementary that was completed in 2014, 10 years ago, and how that building is performing today. There have been six zero energy buildings built since then.”
Those are producing as much energy as what’s being used, said Anderson. “There are solar panels on the roof. We still have a power bill but it’s considerably less in these buildings.”
It costs a little more to build these buildings but they’re going to be here for 50 years, he said. “We get that payback and they’re a lot more economical to operate.”
The Department of Energy does a study of schools on usage of zero energy, Anderson said. “Canyon Creek, Kay’s Creek and Odyssey elementaries have gone through the study. Island View is brand new and will be zero energy. The Bountiful Elementary rebuild and Sunset Junior High will be zero energy and two schools that are under construction, Junior High #18 and Elementary #2 will also be zero energy.”
Everything that is done inside the building will be as efficient as possible, he said. “We’re putting in LED lighting and PV panels (photovoltaic panels are used to produce electricity directly from sunlight).”
Some of the boilers are being replaced as the budget allows in the older schools, said Anderson. “We’re also replacing chillers with higher efficiency pieces of equipment.”
The new buildings have smarter control systems, he said. “It turns on everything. We have a system that writes its own program so that everything is coming on at the right time. There is also a reporting system. It sends me an email that says ‘hey I’m broken.’ That way we can get out there before the school is too hot or too cold.”
Society is changing its thinking about not creating extra CO2 and pollution, said Anderson. “In our district in 2005 we produced 64 tons of CO2. Last year we had a 14,000 ton reduction and we’ve grown by 30%.”
The energy cost and consumption has gone down, he said. “It costs $20,000 a year to operate a new school. Before it was $60,000 – $80,000 to operate.”
The district will own these buildings for 40 – 50 years, Anderson said. “It makes good sense to spend a bit more money upfront to have a more efficient building over its life span.”