New Children's Museum Offers Lesson In Green Living
Monday, September 12th 2011 3:00 PM
By GetSolar Staff.
Museums, like schools, are meant to be places of learning. Children go to interact with history, art, science and a range of other subjects in new and interesting ways. But most would admit that one of the best ways to learn anything is by example. It was for that very reason that, when The Children's Museum in San Diego, California, closed in 2002 to construct a brand new building, the board decided to set an example of green living. When The New Children's Museum opened in May 2008, it came along with a brand new solar installation and a host of other innovative green technologies, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune.
The entire building was designed with an eye to reducing environmental impact. Large open doors facing San Diego Bay let in the cool breeze. A tall glass tower in the middle of the building allows warm air to escape upward, encouraging greater circulation and allowing the museum to go without air conditioning. Particularly in Southern California, this can prove to be a major expense. Added to the large windows that reduce the need for lighting, electricity demands from the building should be comparatively limited. Other efforts were made toward conservation, such as waterless urinals and the use of recycled material for carpeting, tiling and toilet partitions. All told, the Union-Tribune called the museum the most green building in downtown San Diego when it was first completed.
Despite all the other improvements, however, the solar system itself would represent a powerful lesson for the children visiting the museum. Constructed by California solar installers Independent Energy Solutions, the installation covers most of the building's sloped, south-facing roof. Overall the system includes 576 Kyocera solar modules, adding up to a peak capacity of 96.4 kilowatts, and is expected to produce an annual average of 136,000 kilowatt-hours. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, that amounted to the average electricity consumption of 12.5 households as of 2009.
"Kyocera's photovoltaic system is one of the cornerstones of our environmentally sustainable facility, allowing The New Children's Musum to live up to its promise as a green museum for children and families," Rachel Teagle, executive director of Children's Museum San Diego, explained.
Of course, commercial solar installations make a good deal of sense of a business in San Diego for many reasons. Like most solar installation in the country, The New Children's Museum's solar system is tied to the grid, taking advantage of California's net metering guarantees. According to the Database of State Incentives for Renewables & Efficiency, San Diego also boasts an less expensive, expedited permitting process for sustainable building designs such as the museum as well as its Green Power Purchasing program. California offers its own solar incentives as well, in addition to the popular federal program that offers a tax rebate up to one-third of the cost of the solar installation.
Solar installation also make an increasing amount of fiscal sense independent of incentives. Between February 2010 and February 2011 the average rate for commercial electricity jumped a full cent to 12.96 cents per kilowatt-hour from 11.96 cents per kilowatt-hour, according to the EIA. That amounts to savings of more than $17,600 each year with the museums new solar installation. The EIA reports that commercial rates have fluctuated substantially over the past decade-and-a-half, but average prices have steadily risen from 8.75 cents per kilowatt-hour in 1999 to 13.24 cents per kilowatt-hour in 2009. With rates rising and utility bills growing, the museum serves as an example and stands to earn even more in savings in coming years.
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Museums, like schools, are meant to be places of learning. Children go to interact with history, art, science and a range of other subjects in new and interesting ways. But most would admit that one of the best ways to learn anything is by example. It was for that very reason that, when The Children's Museum in San Diego, California, closed in 2002 to construct a brand new building, the board decided to set an example of green living. When 
