SOLAR POWER PROJECT

Dear Fellow Parishioners:

Our last 3 Popes have called us to act on Climate Change. Pope Francis wrote: “The phenomenon of climate change has become an emergency that no longer remains at the margins of society. Instead, it has assumed a central place, reshaping not only industrial and agricultural systems but also adversely affecting the global human family, especially the poor and those living on the economic peripheries of our world.” Pope Francis pledged to make Vatican carbon neutral (no net release of greenhouse gasses) by 2050 and he encourages us to take similar action.

We are already seeing the effects of climate change including heat related deaths, severe weather events, water shortages, loss of coastlines and displacements of millions of people. Our temperature keeps rising, primarily due to our activities that release greenhouse gases into the air. To prevent more serious consequences, we must act now.

Under the leadership of Fr. Romen, St. Gabriel parish has already taken steps to limit climate change including switching to LED lighting, reducing paper and plastic consumption, and installing water stations for filling reusable water bottles.

Our electricity is produced mainly from fossil fuels that produce dangerous greenhouse gases. The electricity that we use over the next 20 years is projected to produce 983 tons of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide. We can eliminate most of this carbon dioxide by switching to Solar Power. Several parishes in the Diocese of Raleigh have already transitioned to Solar Power. 

If St. Gabriel Church were to obtain 70% of our electricity from solar panels, we are expected to save approximately $170,000 over the next 30 years.

The cost of the Solar electrical system is $97,009. We are eligible for a government rebate that will lower our final cost to $67,906. However, we will need to raise the entire $97,009 initially to purchase the system; the rebate comes later. In addition, the part of our 30-year-old roof that will hold these panels should be restored before the installation occurs (the panels would not be visible from the front of the church). Following the installation, we would immediately start saving more than $5000 each year on our electrical bill.

Solar energy is cost effective, and it has a lower impact on our earth than conventional electricity, but we must be willing to pay the initial costs. Please pray about this. 

 Joseph M. Chalovich

Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University

5W-56 Brody Bldg.

Greenville, NC 27834