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Minding Our Footprint
There are more than 1,900 buildings under the purview of the Archdiocese of New York En-ergy Department, and at least two good reasons to make them as energy-efficient as possible.
“Our goal,” says Martin Susz, the department’s director, “is to reduce our carbon footprint and save money on energy costs. Why give the money to the energy company when you can redirect it to the needs and goals of parishes?”
The department’s LED upgrade project, replacing outdated light-bulbs and fixtures, has now been completed in 72 parishes, with an-other nine in progress. Subsidized by the utilities, upgrades generally pay for themselves in 15 months, after which they save parishes thou-sands of dollars a year. Work also continues to “tighten the envelope” in buildings that leak warm air in winter and cool air in summer.
But perhaps the most exciting developments have come with the use of solar energy.
Since last June, the Energy De-partment has installed solar panels in five parishes. “The panels were operational as of January 1,” Susz says, “and this summer we will do installations in two more parishes and two high schools.” In addition, he says, “We are installing a solar array in the Gates of Heaven cem-etery in Hawthorne, which will yield five megawatts of electricity.” The power will be fed directly into Con Ed’s grid, and parishes in cen-tral Westchester will receive corre-sponding energy discounts.
“Solar and LED are great ways to reduce our carbon footprint,” Susz says. The effort will also make all our dollars go farther and will continue, year after year, in all 10 counties of the archdio-cese. “It’s not a commitment with an expiration date.”