Standard village council are contemplating the use of solar panels on its municipal buildings following the success of the Village of Stirling offsetting its municipal electricity usage.
During the regular Wednesday, November 8 council meeting, Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) Yvette April explained she had had discussions with neighbouring Village of Rockyford CAO Lori Miller, followed by discussions with Stirling CAO Scott Donselaar.
CAO April explained the Village of Stirling has been able to not only offset its electricity usage, but has also been able to generate profit by returning additional power to the grid. Stirling has also formed its own utility company-Ridge Utilities-which offers electricity, natural gas, and internet services across southern Alberta, and further generates revenues for the municipality.
Deputy Mayor Adam Sommerfeldt, who teaches at Wheatland Crossing School, noted he had visited the village with other science teachers to learn about the project.
He explained, while Stirling is a net-zero village, this does not mean the solar panels are generating electricity for the entire village. Instead the solar panels help to offset costs for various municipal infrastructures and buildings such as the fire department and village office, and the sewer lift station.
Council directed administration to reach out to user groups within the community, such as the Standard Library and the Standard and Rosebud Arena, to share their electric utility bills for research purposes and determine if there is interest in moving forward with a municipal solar project.
