aleks, haomin, kaylyn, sarah - Taking Action on Renewable Energy

Group Members: aleks, haomin, kaylyn, sarah

Proposal:

Installation of Solar panels on the flat rooftop of the tabletop structure above the OCAD’s main building.

Purpose:

Allow OCAD contribute to environmental sustainability, by switching part of OCAD’s energy use to a more “green” source. Usage of solar energy will reduce OCAD’s Carbon footprint, and overall emission of toxic chemicals into the environment by other non-renewable energy sources.

What’s been done?

OCAD’s current step toward a “greener” source of energy use was to enter into the bullfrog system for the student union building. This system allows part of OCAD to be powered by a “green” source for an increased fee on electricity.

We, however, whish to push this initiative into the next step, by having OCAD become part of the “green” source of electricity. By introducing this system of solar energy into the open grid hydro system, we not only produce electricity for ourselves, but also any extra electricity gets to be inputted into Ontario’s hydro grid.

Technical information:

Structural requirements:

The rooftop of OCAD’s tabletop structure measures approximately 83 meters by 31 meters, which translates into approximately 2500 square meters of area available. We propose to use half of that area, which is about 1250 square meters or approximately 14000 square foot of available space for installing the solar panels.

There should be no additional strain to the building from the extra weight, as the original architect that designed the Sharp Center had proposed that prefabricated student pub or lecture hall can be hung from the tabletop. Thus, the extra weight shouldn’t pose any problems.

The solar panels needs to be south facing, and inclined at about 45° angle. The Sharp Center is completely unobstructed from the south side, making it perfect for the solar panels.

Technology:

We decided to do a comparison study between what we are proposing and another case study that was done at the Horse Palace at the Exhibition place, in late 2006. Their solar panels covered approximately 15000 square feet of area, which is similar to the area we r proposing to cover on OCAD’s rooftop. They chose between two systems, a 50kw system and a 100kw system, which will produce 120,000 kWh of electricity per year. In the end, they decided to opt for the 100kw system, as it was a lot more cost efficient to install.

We propose to do the same, and install the 100kw system at OCAD. Also, because Carmanah Technologies had done a system of this scale for the case study, it would be a lot more efficient to use the same company, as they have the experience to create a smooth operation.

Budgeting and Incentives:

The costs for solar panels are according to the energy produced by the system. To create a 100kw system costs about $1.1 million (where as the 50kw system require about $750,000, about $15,000 per kw) averaging about $11,000 per kw.

From our research, we understand that OCAD’s sustainability taskforce only has about $518,000 in their budget. However, the government gives many incentives toward those that wish to build systems of energy production based on sustainable sources. The case study at the Exhibition Place built their system primarily based on government incentives. They received a grant of $250,000 from the Federation of Canadian Municipalities and a grant of $250,000 from the Toronto Atmospheric Fund. In addition, they were also able to apply for a $600,000 interest free loan from the Better Buildings Partnership.

We understand that we might not receive the same type of grants from the government, because the case study was a pilot program. However, the existence of these grants and loans will be able to make the project feasible. As well, the government also has another incentive – for every kilowatt-hour produced by the renewable system, the government will pay back 42 cents, thus allowing the system to pay for itself in about 22 years.