Schools see energy savings

Henry County Public Schools is seeing significant energy savings through its partnership with an energy conservation company. The system was able to reduce energy consumption by 9,561 million British thermal units (MMBTU) and avoid $219,926 in utility costs from Feb. 1 through Oct. 1, according to a school board document. “This represents a 15.6 percent reduction in energy costs compared to the same period during the prior year. The greenhouse gas reduction of 1,534 metric tons of carbon dioxide is equivalent to not driving 275 cars for a year,” said a report included in the board’s agenda package for its meeting Thursday night. There was no discussion of the report during the board’s meeting. However, Bill Wingfield, the school system’s executive director of operations, said in an interview that during the fall of last year, the school system contracted with the company Energy Education Inc.