CLEVELAND District State High School is using solar panels to produce about three-quarters of the electricity it needs.
Having increased the number of panels to 404, Principal Paul Bancroft’s goal is for the school to produce more power than it requires.
The panels are installed on the three-storey junior secondary block which was built four years ago.
Mr Bancroft said the requirements for the building included a flat, slightly sloping north-facing roof that would be suitable for panels that produce 167 kilowatts.
“At the moment on weekends, we are producing more electricity than we use,” he said.
We are producing more electricity than we use.
- Principal Paul Bancroft
He was not aware of another school that had a similar installation of solar panels.
He said Education Queensland had provided schools with an incentive to save water and electricity by providing funding based on use, rather than on cost.
“This means that we have more money for school resources because we save electricity and students are able to learn about sustainability,” he said.
Mr Bancroft said the school also used water saving devices, bore water and natural farming methods, with no pesticides, in their agricultural precinct.
