Colorado College installs a solar array on a dorm

A Colorado College student has helped the school start on the path to its goal of "carbon neutrality" when it comes to energy use.

    David Amster-Olszewski, 21, junior from Miami, and other students recently persuaded the school to install a $186,000 solar array on a dorm, which turned out to be the largest civilian solar array in Colorado Springs.

    CC officials had been studying the feasibility of solar power as part of a 10-year plan to reduce reliance on fossil fuels.

    "We've done so far what the college is really good at, which is talking and writing a report," said Amster-Olszewski on Friday, outside the Edith Gaylord House, where the panels were placed. "What we have to do now is make sure we don't just put it in the library, in a thesis, and let it collect dust."

    Amster-Olszewski spent the past two summers working for a company that makes solar panels. This spring, he began wondering why CC had no solar power.

    He is not a typical environmentalist. Although he said he cares for the planet and the impacts of burning fossil fuels, his belief in solar power is more pragmatic.

    "The reason why I believe in this technology is that it is cost-effective," said Amster-Olszewski, who is majoring in international political economics.

    He lined up Boulderbased Independent Power Systems to install the solar panels, asked Californiabased SunPower Corp. to offer panels at a discount and got commitments from donors. A Colorado Springs Utilities rebate program to encourage solar use contributed $81,000 and sealed the deal.

    The panels were installed in two weeks, and went online last week, just in time for CC's commencement today, which was Amster-Olszewski's goal.

    CC officials applauded the students for spurring them to action on the solar panels.

    "They don't know much about patience," said George Eckhardt, assistant director of facilities services. "They're hard drivers, but this is a very good thing to have happened to get us started on the path to sustainability."

    The solar panels can produce 35,000 kilowatt hours a year, enough power for one-third of the dorm during peak hours. The remaining power the dorm needs will come from the electrical grid, and when students aren't there, the solar array sends electricity back into the grid.

    Utilities confirmed Friday that CC is the largest nonmilitary solar array here. Fort Carson recently built a much larger one, spanning 12 acres, capable of 3,200 megawatt hours a year.

    Utilities has offered solar incentives since 2006, with 45 residents and three nonresidents participating, spokesman Dave Grossman said.

    Amster-Olszewski hopes the dorm project will spur more interest in solar power. His project for the next school year will be to get solar panels for the dorm he lives in. And he hopes to work in the solar power industry after graduating.

    "The technology is here. It's ready to be used. The only real issue is getting the public to understand."