Educational Solar Array is Energized in Buffalo
August 23, 2019 – The sun is powering a new learning tool in Buffalo. An educational solar array provided by the city’s wholesale electric supplier, the Minnesota Municipal Power Agency (MMPA), is now operating as part of an energy education program for Buffalo-Hanover-Montrose (BHM) Schools. The solar array is located at Tatanka Elementary STEM School (TESS).
The 5 kilowatt installation is part of MMPA’s Hometown Solar Grant Program, an extension of its Energy Education Program for its 12-member municipalities. The BHM solar array provides an opportunity for students and residents to learn about the characteristics and benefits of solar power. Information and data from the solar panels will be shared among BHM schools to support energy education in the classroom.
“The addition of solar panels at Tatanka Elementary STEM School provides us with the opportunity to use them in our current curricular activities and to expand into new learning opportunities,” said TESS Principal Donald Metzler.
Metzler said TESS has a primary focus on engineering – the application of science – and how science plays a part in students’ everyday life.
John Crooks, Chairman of the MMPA Board of Directors and Shakopee Public Utilities Manager said, “Hometown Solar is a great demonstration of how the Agency provides value to our member communities.”
Since 2010, MMPA’s Energy Education Program has provided learning opportunities for more than 18,000 elementary school students in its member communities through classroom information, in-school assemblies, and power facility tours.
MMPA member Buffalo Municipal Utilities provides electric, fiber communications, water, street lighting, storm sewer, and wastewater systems to the community. The department maintains a standard of excellence in responding to emergencies -- restoring services while protecting public safety.
Buffalo became a member of MMPA in 2005.
More information about MMPA is available at www.mmpa.org. Members include municipal utilities in: Anoka, Arlington, Brownton, Buffalo, Chaska, East Grand Forks, Elk River, Le Sueur, North St. Paul, Olivia, Shakopee and Winthrop. MMPA’s management partner is Avant Energy, a Minneapolis-based energy management company and an innovative supplier of energy project development, management, trading, consulting and utility operations services. See more at www.avantenergy.com.
Contact: Bob Rumpza, Rumpza Consulting, 612-309-3971, bob@rumpzaconsulting.com.
