Duval County Public Schools has an extra $6 million that will be used over the next year to help students not performing at grade level.
The additional funds aren’t from a tax increase, cutting teacher salaries or providing less instructional materials.
They are gained from conserving electricity, which JEA helped the system accomplish.
Schools Superintendent Nikolai Vitti said it wasn’t difficult to decide how to spend the money.
“It will allow us to fund additional teaching positions in our schools to help students with reading and math,” he said.
The district’s energy cost of $151.42 per student is the lowest among the seven largest urban school districts in the state and the second-lowest cost per student among Florida’s 67 school districts.
Schools are conserving utilities through a process that ranges from installing lighting that uses less electricity to using sensors that cut off lights in empty classrooms to investing in high-efficiency HVAC equipment when it’s time to replace older units.
The school system recently replaced five HVAC chillers with more efficient equipment at a cost of about $345,000 — after a $75,000 rebate from JEA based on energy conservation.
In addition to installing the equipment, the school system is adding controls that reduce air-conditioning and heating costs at night and on weekends when schools are not occupied.
“HVAC is our most significant cost for electricity,” said Vitti.
In addition to the rebate that lowered the capital cost for the equipment, the more efficient units will save the schools 700,000 kilowatt hours of electricity per year, which translates into a payback on the new units in four to six years.
“When we reduce the use of air-conditioning, we reduce costs,” Vitti said.
Rebates for energy-efficient lighting have been offered by JEA to commercial and residential customers since 2009.
Since then, 4.9 million compact fluorescent and LED lights have been purchased for a total rebate of more than $4.6 million.
The utility introduced the InvestSmart home energy upgrade program in 2010. It includes rebates for energy-efficient lighting and HVAC replacement, attic insulation, solar screens and window tinting, duct repair, system tune-ups and plumbing fixtures that use less water.
Since the program began, JEA has provided more than 47,500 home energy rebates for total incentives of more than $2.6 million.
On the commercial side, nearly 5,200 businesses have received more than $8.7 million in rebates.
In addition to the public schools, the largest commercial conservation rebate participants include Jacksonville Naval Air Station, Mayport Naval Station, Publix Super Markets, Winn-Dixie, Walmart, Anheuser-Busch, Baptist Medical Center, Mayo Clinic Jacksonville, St. Vincent’s Health System and the University of North Florida.
JEA gets the money for the rebates from a 1-cent per kilowatt hour conservation fee paid by its customers on their monthly utility bills.
“All of the money is returned to the community in the form of conservation programs,” said Payson Tilden, manager of customer solutions. “The whole point is to help our customers make their energy usage lower.”
Motivating customers to invest to use less electricity helps them save money each month and there’s a benefit for JEA as well, Tilden said.
“In the bigger picture, when our customers conserve, it means we don’t have to build a new power plant,” she said.
JEA projects flat revenue for the next year, despite a growing customer base. Not having to borrow money to provide more generating capacity also means the utility can pay down its existing debt sooner.
Tilden said JEA provides energy audits and consultation for customers who wish to participate in the rebate programs.
For commercial customers, JEA has staff members who work with companies to develop the most effective conservation plan and then help them find a contractor who can perform the installation.
After the equipment is installed and inspected, JEA issues the rebate to the customer.
It’s even easier for residential energy conservation, Tilden said.
JEA has established a group of local “trade allies” — prequalified contractors who are mandated to make customers aware of energy efficiency rebates and install equipment that uses less electricity.
When an efficient system is installed by an approved contractor, the rebate is shown on the customer’s invoice and JEA reimburses the contractor for the discount,
“Our trade allies are really outstanding,” said Tilden.
For more information about conserving energy, visit JEA.com and click on Ways to Save at the top of the home page.
@DRMaxDowntown
(904) 356-2466