Energy agreement between Maui Community College and Maui Electric Company sparks inspiration for the use of alternative energy sources. “The charter is an opportunity to design ways to benefit the energy challenges we face.”Imagine a parking lot full of carports with outlets from which electric cars recharge. The solar panels on each carport’s roof provide energy for the vehicles and the entire building the parking lot serves. Does this sound like an environmentalist’s futuristic utopia? Actually, this future is not that distant for Maui Community College (MCC). With visionary leaders like MCC Chancellor Clyde Sakamoto, Sustainable Living Institute of Maui (SLIM) Executive Director Alex de Roode, and an electric company that is willing to work on implementing alternative sources of energy, this vision may become a reality for Maui.
MCC’s 300 to 400 KW (kilowatt) PV (photovoltaic) parking lot project represents what may result from a charter signed on Tuesday, April 15. Sakamoto and Maui Electric Company (MECO) President Ed Reinhardt signed an Energy Partnership Charter, an initiative between MCC and MECO to implement more alternative energy sources at the college. The initiative is aimed at promoting sustainability and reducing dependence on fossil fuels.
“We have invited MECO to leverage alternative energy sources at Maui Community College,” said Sakamoto. MCC is already conducting a $5 million project to improve its power infrastructure. Because 97 percent of Maui’s energy comes from imported fossil fuel, Sakamoto said the college is very interested in alternative energy sources. “The charter is an opportunity to design ways to benefit the energy challenges we face.” With the high cost of living in Hawai‘i compounded by the surcharge of fuel, Sakamoto said the price of oil effects every aspect of life, ranging from the cost of food to the cost of doing business on Maui.
“We have a positive relationship with MECO—they’re positive about MCC being a demonstration site,” said de Roode, who is already working on applying sustainability to curriculum development for programs such as sustainable construction, composting and the school’s culinary program. He said the mission of this charter is to disseminate information on sustainability, including renewable energy production, more sustainable transportation, sustainable agriculture and cultural sustainability.
“In addition, this charter will lead to the signing of a memorandum of agreement outlining specific steps for action,” said Katie McMillan, MCC director of Marketing and Community Relations.
With Sakamoto’s leadership, MCC has promoted sustainability in many different ways. Beyond educational programs, MCC is also a member of organizations that support sustainability, including the Global Islands Network aimed at ecological sustainability, and the International Small Islands Studies Association, which emphasizes resource management and the environment.
Sakamoto said MCC is looking for opportunities to become a demonstration site so that businesses and consumers could use them as a model to gauge how different sources of alternative energy perform.
De Roode hopes to implement interactive education where people can view a digital display that ties together all of MCC’s sources of renewable energy production in a user-friendly system supported by software that assesses the data, which is made publicly available.
Other projects that may result from the charter involve a 40 KW PV training system. De Roode said solar panels would be temporarily placed on MCC’s tennis courts producing 40 KW at peak production—when the sun shines the brightest—between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. Students and faculty could learn about design and installation, he said, and then following the training session, the panels would be placed on the rooftops of MCC’s buildings. Rising Sun Solar, a Maui-based company, has been contracted for this project.
“We’re excited to work with the college on this project to help create more qualified people to work in the industry,” said Brad Albert, owner of Rising Sun Solar. “Our company really tries to support solar education, training and equipment procurement. Passing on trade knowledge to students is good because it provides industry-specific training for the students, which is important for the state’s economic development.”
Another project involves a 600 KW wind turbine that was donated to MCC. Although a request for a proposal and a public announcement are still in the works, this is just one of many progressive ideas that may result from the Energy Partnership Charter.
“Showing a functional model is key,” said de Roode, who intends on eventual replication of these renewable energy models by the community. He said community outreach would help increase public use of renewable energy. Currently, de Roode works with grades K–12, helping private and public school teachers incorporate operational programs of sustainability. He has also worked with green building associated with LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) standards, the private sector and nonprofits, and has developed farming partnerships. He said making these programs as accessible as possible is important for increasing sustainability in Maui.
Ten years into the future, Sakamoto would like the most cost-effective power provision structure developed for Hawai‘i. By reducing fossil fuel dependence, he said the development of a stable power rate structure could be developed that is much lower than what it is now. He said this type of structure would allow Maui to be in a position that makes it an affordable place to do business.
The Energy Partnership Charter is an innovative step in this direction.