Minister of the Environment and Housing the Hon. Romauld Ferreira, Permanent Secretary Janice Miller, Undersecretary Reginald Saunders, and other education and environment government officials and stakeholders, on August 28, 2019, took a tour of the 95-percent-complete energy conservation measures (ECMs), being undertaken at Anatol Rodgers High School.
"We are actually very, very pleased with the progress that has been made here," Minister Ferreira said. "They are essentially finished."
Among those taking part from the Ministry included Senior Environmental Officer with the Ministry of the Environment and Housing Dr. Rhianna Neely-Murphy and Environmental Officer Lyndee Bowe. Project Manager O'Neil Moss, from Woslee Construction, led the tour and Southern District Superintendent of Education Theophilus Claridge was also present.
Major specific energy conservation measures incorporated in this project include -- but are not limited to -- the following features: a 250 kW-DC rooftop solar photovoltaic (PV) array; vacancy sensors in classrooms computer labs, and lounges to control lights and ceiling fans; remote-programmable thermostats; and low-flow lavatory aerators.
Minister Ferreira said energy efficiency can mean lowering costs to Bahamian society, and he brought special note to the use of solar energy and the reduction of water use in lavatories.
"That is very critical because the most precious resource in the 21st Century is actually fresh water -- it is not oil, believe it or not, it is water," he pointed out. "And the fact that we are reducing usage is very important. We get all of this water from rainfall; so conserving water is very important."
Ms. Bowe noted that the installments are expected to reduce the energy demands of the building, which will have an immediate and measurable impact, while improving comfort of students and faculty in the facility.
School Principal Harcourt McCoy lauded Minister Ferreira and his Ministry for choosing the school, and Woslee Construction for their work and professionalism on the project and the way that it did not interrupt operations at the school. He also pointed out that seeing these measures in place could inspire students to follow a career path in ECMs.
"We are so grateful for this opportunity to be the pilot for this energy-efficient project," Mr. McCoy said.
"Obviously, we want to improve the learning conditions of the children," Minister Ferreira pointed out. "None of this is going to mean anything, if it does not improve the experience of learning” for the young people.
According to information from the Ministry of the Environment and Housing, The Bahamas has identified the deployment of renewable energy as a primary pathway to meet its Climate Change and Sustainable Development Goals, while reducing its dependence on fossil fuels. That reduction is in alignment with the government’s goal to incorporate 30% renewable into the National Grid by 2030.
Government-owned buildings have also been identified as a partial solution to the implementation of solar PV systems across New Providence, the Ministry continued.
"As land availability is scarce, the roofs of these buildings offer a solution to the land availability problem," Ms. Bowe noted. "Implementing energy conservation measures is also one of the strategic objectives of the Government to help fulfill commitments to support a low-carbon economy. Anatol Rodgers High School on New Providence Island has been targeted as one of the most suitable facilities for a retrofit due to energy use and solar power potential."
According to the Ministry, the Italian Government awarded a grant to fund the project. After a "very competitive" tendering process, the contract was awarded to Woslee Construction. Commissioning will follow, once the work is completed and the system has been given the final approval from the relevant agencies.
Minister Ferreira commended the staff of his Ministry, especially the Environment Unit, for the role they played in the initiative.
This took a lot of planning," he pointed out. "This was the result of a grant from the Italian Government; so just getting that grant alone was a lot of work.
"I congratulate the contractors involved," Minister Ferreira added. "Obviously, they did an excellent job. You can hear it from Mr. Moss: he is naturally enthusiastic about subjects of this nature; so we congratulate them wholeheartedly, and we wish them every success."
Minister Ferreira noted that there are other school and ECM projects in the works in the near future.
"We continue to march forward towards our goal of increased renewable energy penetration," he said.
Minister of the Environment and Housing the Hon. Romauld Ferreira, Permanent Secretary Janice Miller, Undersecretary Reginald Saunders, and other education and environment government officials and stakeholders, on August 28, 2019, on tour of the nearly-completed energy conservation measures (ECMs), being undertaken at Anatol Rodgers High School.
(BIS Photos/Eric Rose)
