When the CHPS Are Down to Zero

Why getting down to zero in this case is a good thing and why 2010 and 2020 are important solar dates for CHPS (Collaborative for High Performance Schools).

First, some interesting numbers besides zero on the California School System.

• California is responsible for the education of 12 ½% of the student population in the United States.
• Enrollment rates are 4 times the national average.
• California has a wide range of district sizes; from the 732,000 students at the Los Angeles Unified School District to more than 600 small school districts having less than 2,500 students.
• 100s of schools are being built each year to house more than 100,000 new students and to accommodate state-mandated class size reductions.
• Over 30% of existing facilities are in need of major renovation.
• California schools are spending more than $700 million per year on energy.

Keeping ever mindful of the numbers listed above, the Collaborative for High Performance Schools mission is simple: Facilitate the design, construction and operation of high performance schools where environments are not only energy and resource efficient, but also healthy, comfortable, well lit, and containing the amenities for a quality education.

CHPS aims to raise awareness of the impact and advantages of high performance schools and help increase student performance with better-designed and healthier facilities.  They seek to supply professionals with better tools to facilitate effective design, construction and maintenance of high performance schools and strive to increase school energy and resource efficiency while reducing peak electric loads.

What defines a High Performance School?

•  A community resource    
• A teaching tool
• Comfortable
• Commissioned
• Easy to maintain and operate
• Efficient 
• Environmentally responsive
• Healthy       
• Safe & Secure           
• Stimulating Architecture

Why are High Performance Schools Important?

• Increased Student Learning & Teacher Performance
• Increased Average Daily Attendance (ADA)
• Reduced Operating Cost
• Reduced Liability
• Reduced Environmental Impact

Those are laudable goals, but the reduced Environmental Impact is only one of their aims so why is Renewable Energy garnering so much interest now?
On the horizon, loom some important policies that will influence schools a great deal.
For new school construction:

• Beginning in 2010, all new schools would be built to CHPS 2009 Criteria.
• By 2020, all new schools would be required to be Zero Net Energy¹

And for existing schools:

• All schools seeking modernization funds would be required to meet CHPS standards. By 2020, schools not going through a major modernization would be required to undergo energy and water benchmarking^2.
• Implement all efficiency measures with a 10-year payback.

CHPS numbers are growing.  More than 35 CHPS-designated schools are already operating with another 300 in progress while 27 school districts have signed resolutions making the CHPS Criteria the standard for all new school construction and major modernization.  Take a look at some of the latest schools to make the grade.

And yes, there is a grading system.  CHPS has a Criteria Overview that not only defines a ‘high performance school’ but also has a system of pre-requisites  through a point system where 28 out of 81 possible points will get you the CHPS rating.  The main categories are Site, Water, Energy, Materials, Indoor Environmental Quality, and District.  Each of these categories have a number of distinct areas where the school can earn points.

For example, under the category of Energy, you’d find groups like Energy Efficiency, Alternative Energy Sources, Commissioning and Training and within each degrees of credits that can be attained.

Hop, Skip, Jump.  2009 is a hop away, 2010 a mere skip and 2020 will be here before you know it.  The time is now to make the jump to become a high performance school.

¹ Zero Net Energy:  The point at which the building generates as much energy as it uses.  These buildings are ON-GRID so they can sell excess back to the utility company.
² Benchmarking: A process to search for and identify the best practice with the objective of implementing this best practice and thus, improving performance.

Comments

[Camren]

Such articles do help to liberalize and I want to thank you for that! But to understand the details, one should read a lot of literature, which is not enough in the internet. To make the search easier, you may http://www.pdfqueen.com use pdf ebooks search engine