Montague considering solar farm for local rink
Solar farm 'seems to fit in well' with the provincial and federal government's plans
The Town of Montague, P.E.I., wants to harvest the power of the sun to make ice at the local rink.
"Solar panels just seem like a logical exploration given the power usage at the rink," said Andrew Daggett, chief administrative officer for the town.
Daggett said Montague is launching a study to build a field of solar panels by the Cavendish Farms Wellness Centre to try and tackle the high electricity bill they face every month.
The study is being done by Coles Associates Ltd., an architectural and engineering firm in Charlottetown — the same group that built the rink in Montague.
"If anything else it's a feasibility study," Daggett said.
Solar panels to counter 'substantial' bill
"All rinks require tremendous energy when you start running the compressors and make ice," Daggett said.
"We can make power ... through the spring, summer, and fall and then draw on that credit through the winter."
The monthly power bill, Daggett said, averages around $8,000 and can reach upwards of $10,000.
"It's a matter of trying to get a return on an investment and trying to saving ourselves some money," Daggett said. "Green power is always good, but if it's actually more expensive it becomes a much harder sell."
He hopes the study finds that it's both financially reasonable to implement the solar field and save themselves some money.
"Given the amount of power we use there it would take a pretty large field to completely offset the power usage. It's possible and that's what we're looking into."
Panels 'fit well' with provincial, federal plans
"It's all about crunching the numbers and seeing if it's feasible and does it make sense — from a financial point of view but also from an environmental point of view."
Daggett said they haven't reached out to the province for funding yet, but he is considering applying for federal funding as well.
The study "just seems to fit in well," Daggett said, with the provincial and federal government's environmental plans.
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With files from Laura Chapin