Beverly High School, site of one of the country's oldest, school-based photovoltaic arrays, will remain on the cutting edge of green technology, thanks in part to a grant announced this week by the Massachusetts Renewable Energy Trust.
The new building rising next to the current high school on Sohier Road incorporates many energy-saving features. But since 1981, the array of solar panels on the hill next to the high school has been using the sun's rays to actually produce energy.
That facility, one of eight demonstration projects installed nationwide in response to the energy crisis of the late 1970s and early '80s, will be enhanced with a minimum of $150,000 (which could be increased to $300,000) of funding granted through a program designed for "high-performance green schools" in the commonwealth.
The Beverly and Manchester Essex systems were the only North Shore schools included in the latest round of funding.
Many deserve credit for the success of the Beverly project, the first and foremost being the late Dr. John Coleman, an MIT physicist who served for many years on the Beverly School Committee. He led the effort to make Beverly one of the early demonstration sites and devoted himself to keeping it running even after leaving public life.
According to a history of the site prepared by Solar Now, the nonprofit founded by Coleman and environmental educator Carmel Valianti-Smith to oversee it, all the other early demonstration projects were eventually scrapped. Only Beverly's remained in operation, barely. It was rejuvenated in 1994 by another federal grant that led to the establishment of Solar Now which today offers educational programs and operates a wind turbine along with the photovoltaic array on the site.
Rep. Mary Grant, D-Beverly, was understandably enthusiastic about the latest grant, noting, "Green building initiatives are so important to boosting our awareness and use of the science available to enhance our environment, as well as our health. These initiatives have the added benefit of encouraging the growth of business and jobs in these areas."
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