EDITORIAL: New school sets example

With its newest elementary school, Monroe is trying to do its part to address climate change.

   The Monroe Township School District is going green.
   The district broke ground Thursday on a $26.8 million, 80,275-square-foot elementary school that when complete, will be home to kindergarten through second-grade students and go a long way toward easing enrollment pressures in the district.
   It also will help address a larger issue: climate change. The school will be fitted with 28 photovoltaic panels to generate electricity and a fresh rainwater collection system.
   While they may increase the cost initially —$560,000 for the panels and $420,000 for the rainwater collection system — installing them will have long-term benefits for the environment, students and taxpayers.
   The photovoltaic panels will harness and store solar energy — allowing the district to generate electricity for the school and, on some days, to sell electricity to Jersey Central Power and Light, the power company that serves Monroe.
   The rainwater system will collect rain in a 50,000-gallon underground storage tank. That water will be filtered and chlorinated before being piped back into the building for use in the school’s toilets.
   Jerry Tague, director of facilities for the district, says both systems will eventually pay for themselves, and could save the district money in the long term.
   Just as important as the money, however, is the impact the district will be having on the environment. Schools use a tremendous amount of energy and water, and mitigating their reliance on fossil fuels (to generate heat and electricity) can go a long way to keeping things "green."
   Plus, it sets an example for other districts while teaching Monroe students an important lesson about the planet. The systems can be teaching aids, with students learning how the systems work, why they’re there and how their actions affect the planet.
   They are sure to make a difference, now and in the future.