MD grants $17 million to help local schools boost energy efficiency

The Maryland Energy Administration has awarded $17 million in grants to help public schools reduce their carbon emissions, lower energy costs and otherwise align with the state’s broader climate goals, the governor’s office said in a press release Thursday.

The agency has awarded grants for 30 projects across 11 school districts, covering projects like installing rooftop solar systems, replacing gas-powered HVAC units with electric heat-pump systems and upgrading doors and frames to help maintain comfortable indoor temperatures at lower costs.

“Making our schools more energy efficient doesn’t just help us cut carbon, it also saves taxpayers money,” Gov. Wes Moore said in a statement. “Investing in cutting-edge, cost-saving energy technology is a win for our schools, a win for our environment, a win for our workers, and a win for fiscal responsibility.”

Among the awards were $2.15 million to replace propane cooling systems with electric air handling units at a Worcester County elementary school, and $2 million to replace a fuel-oil HVAC system with a ground-source heat-pump system and install a rooftop solar system at Park Heights Academy in Baltimore.

The Maryland Energy Administration grants are also expected to go toward the construction of net-zero energy schools, which are supposed to generate as much or more renewable energy as they consume each year, according to the governor’s office.

As part of Maryland’s broader climate goals, state officials aim to cut greenhouse gas emissions 60% by 2031, have 100% clean power by 2035, help overburdened and fossil-fuel-dependent communities transition to clean energy, and eventually phase out the sale of gas-powered vehicles.

The plan to cut greenhouse gas emissions 60% by 2031 is expected to cost about $1 billion annually, according to a report the state Department of the Environment released at the end of 2023.

The Moore administration also announced this week that it had opened a $64 million grant program for the state’s incorporated towns, cities and counties — another move to encourage local clean-energy projects and accelerate progress toward the climate goals.

Moore’s team has also billed the grant program as part of the push to decrease strain on the regional electrical grid, for which capacity has failed to keep pace with the ever-increasing demand for energy among a growing number of data centers, businesses and homes.

Democrats, who control the governor’s mansion and have a supermajority in the legislature, have repeatedly stressed the need to boost in-state energy production to decrease reliance on neighboring states.

Maryland, which belongs to a regional grid composed of 13 states and Washington, D.C., imports roughly 40% of its electricity from other states.