By JOE MELILLO
WISH-TV | wishtv.com
Hamilton County officials say they are excited about the major upgrade to their jail and health department buildings: Using solar panels for their power.
They’re located on top of the Hamilton County Jail and over off State Road 37, near the public safety radio tower. More than 9,300 panels were used in the project. In total, the project cost about $8 million.
County officials say this change will save the county $25 million in utility and maintenance costs over the next 25 years. The solar project will provide enough energy to power 38 percent of the jail complex and 100 percent of the health services building.
It also will produce enough clean power to avoid greenhouse emissions equivalent to that of 10 million driven car miles. In addition to the solar panels, the county has also changed out all lighting to LED Energy Efficient Lighting and converted the jail’s HVAC systems from electric to gas.
Lastly, there is an education piece to it all. There will be a monitoring system so colleges and high school students can learn about solar energy.