Two full years of energy conservation efforts in the RCS school district have resulted in excess of $670,000 of energy cost avoidance.

RCS Energy Manager Matt Miller said this week that through the end of January –the two-year mark for the program – the district had realized a $674,204 cost avoidance and reduced potential energy expenditures by 32.8 percent.   

During January of this year, the district saw a cost avoidance of $35,699 as a result of its conservation initiative. The cost avoidance is the difference between what would have been spent if the district had not implemented an energy savings program and what it actually spent.

RCS entered into an agreement with the Energy Education Inc. early last year in an effort to reduce energy costs. Energy Education projected a total seven-year savings of $878,318 for the district by reducing energy consumption in the district's four schools, as well as other buildings.

The district is on pace to well exceed that projected cost avoidance.

The program – which has been endorsed by the Board of Education - involves implementation of a series of conservation efforts and faculty and staff education initiatives.

During summer months, this has meant the thermostats in all district buildings where air conditioners are present have been turned up to six-degrees from past summers, up to 76 degrees.

During the winter months, the thermostats are set between 68 and 70 degrees.

The change impacts the offices and certain other areas in all four schools, as well as the District Office Building, Transportation Department Building and Facilities Department Building.

“It’s about finding a medium where our faculty, staff and others can still work comfortably, yet the district

Additionally, Miller tracks energy consumption – including electricity, water, sewer, natural gas and fuel – using energy accounting software. By doing so, he can quickly identify and correct areas that need immediate attention.

He also lets faculty and staff know when they are not doing all they can do reduce energy usage. For example, during an update sent this week to all faculty and staff, Miller noted a “slippage in (turning off) computers and lights” when they are not in use.

Other energy conservation efforts in the district include:

• Turning off refrigerators in the faculty rooms and other areas during breaks

• Unplugging radios, coffee pots, microwaves or other electric devices  during breaks

• Closing off to faculty and others areas of the building for cleaning to avoid taking longer to perform those task and thus using more energy during breaks

• Ensuring mechanical systems are operating at optimal levels for energy efficiency