Work got underway Monday to significantly increase the use of solar power at Eastern Kentucky University. The project involves the installation of 120 solar panels on top of the north wing of the science building.
The money saved by using the solar panels will go to support scholarships for science students. EKU alumnus, scientist, and philanthropist Gary Booth is financially supporting the solar project. Associate Director in Capital Construction Project Administration, Kishore Acharya says there’s room for growth when it comes to solar power at the Richmond school. “We have plenty of room on campus. Our goal is we’ll have more donors come forward and donate for this solar panel project,” said Acharya.
Acharya says energy and tax credits and the environmental benefits make it a good fit for Eastern, maybe more so than individual homeowners. “For a residential building, it may not be so much because your payback period is a little longer than Arizona, California. But commercial building or educational entity, they think it still is a better option,” noted Acharya.
Once completed in about a week and a half, Acharya says Eastern will then have a total of 153 solar panels in place.
