A partnership between Avista and Spokane Public Schools is saving thousands in energy.

"Improvements during 2014 have qualified for $237,189 in energy efficiency rebates and incentives from Avista and are expected to save SPS approximately $65,000 annually in energy costs," said Laurine Jue, an Avista spokeswoman. Furthermore, "as a result of an ongoing partnership focused on energy efficiency, the school district has received more than $2.7 million in energy efficiency incentives since 2005."

During 2014, Ferris High School was the focus of most of the energy efficiency projects. Those include:

• The insulation in the building’s exterior walls has an increased insulation R-Value
• Highly efficient windows throughout the building will keep the heat in and the cold out
• LED and high efficiency fluorescent technology was incorporated to reduce the amount of energy needed for lighting, while maintaining appropriate light levels for learning
• The building’s cooling system exceeds efficiency standards by 7 percent
• The building’s boilers average a 92 percent efficiency rating, 12 percent above code standards.

 

“Reducing energy use is a great example to set for our future generations,” said Spokane Public Schools Associate Superintendent Mark Anderson. “We are grateful to Avista for providing opportunities that allow the school district to save energy, as well as taxpayer dollars.”

Avista offers a number of energy efficiency programs to residential, commercial and industrial customers, Jue said. "These tariff-based programs have been offered for over three decades because it generally costs less to help customers reduce their usage through energy efficiency programs than to acquire additional, more costly energy resources."

For more Information on energy efficiency programs and other energy management tools go to:  www.avistautilities.com/savings

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