Brooks Memorial Library: Now Lending Sunshine!
This fall, Brooks Memorial Library will complete a range of improvements and expansions to its building and grounds, but the most energizing part is one that you may not even see...
The rooftop of the library has now become a solar array, with 172, 440-watt panels mounted on a ballasted racking system that sits on top of the newly replaced roof membrane. Any time a Town building needs a roof replacement, it is a good time to ask: should solar also be installed? Because the lifespan of a solar array and roof are similar, and you wouldn’t want to have to remove an array to replace a roof that was aging.
By not puncturing the roof membrane, the Town and its developer, Southern Vermont Solar, ensured that there wouldn’t be any issues with the warranty of the roof, and possible leaks.
This particular array will produce around 90,000 kilowatt hours (kWh) each year, and maintain that production for most of its lifespan (25-30 years). At current electric prices, this energy amounts to $592,000 – $760,000 of value provided to the Town across the 25 to 30 years it is active. To look at it in terms of carbon emissions, this array will prevent the release of roughly 1,100 metrics tons of CO2, and move the Town closer to its climate goals. For other examples of what this carbon could equate to, see the graphic below.
The Town has previously invested in solar production through the solar field that caps the former landfill at Windham Solid Waste Management District, but needed more renewable production to cover the growing energy footprint of the Town over time. The net-metering credits from both the landfill solar field, and the rooftop solar array at the Library will be shared across all the usage of all Town buildings and departments, so as to equally benefit all of the Town’s facilities, even those that aren’t suitable for solar on their roofs.
Funding for this array was made possible by the Global Warming Solutions Fund (GWSF), Initially created in spring of 2021, this funding was created to be spent within the following 6 domains:
1. Efficiency work (weatherization, air-sealing, insulation, higher building performance standards, heating systems, lighting systems, control systems, and more)
2. Energy generation (solar, hydro, geothermal, methane digester, etc.)
3. Energy storage (battery storage and energy recovery technologies)
4. Electrification/de-carbonization (including buildings, equipment, and vehicles)
5. Other emissions reduction methods — The addition of this category in 2022 allowed for use of the funds for projects that would result in the elimination and/or replacement of any chemicals (such as refrigerants used at the Town’s ice rink, or methane emitted from the wastewater treatment plant) that possess significant global warming potential (GWP).
6. Planning, project design, and indirect/admin costs to enable any projects in the areas listed above.
The fund was initially capitalized with the monies that had accrued in the Town’s Energy Efficiency budget line item and was provided an annual contribution of $70,000 through 2024, which accrued year over year. At Town Meeting in 2024, this annual allotment was doubled to $140,000. In subsequent budget years, due to financial constraints, this allotment was discontinued, however the Selectboard approved giving the remaining balance to complete the Library’s rooftop solar project.
While the Global Warming Solutions Fund was expended in the creation of this project, it soon may be re-capitalized through the Town’s ability to monetize renewable energy tax credits, worth up to 30% of the overall project cost. This means that later in 2027, the IRS will provide the Town with roughly $60–70,000 that could then return to the Global Warming Solutions Fund and support additional energy/climate projects for Brattleboro.
This project represents the values of Brattleboro in action, and serves to benefit the Town, the Library, the environment, and the taxpayers of Brattleboro. If budgets allow, more solar could further these benefits, especially at locations such at the wastewater treatment plant, water treatment plant, and rooftop of the Gibson-Aiken Senior & Recreation Center.
