Dale Petty

Solar Photovoltaic Installation at my home

In the summer of 2009, I worked with solar energy contractor John Wakeman (SUR Energy) to install twelve 186W Sanyo solar PV panels on my garage. The system is grid-tied (Detroit Edison is my "battery", except when their power goes out.) We get about 300 kWh per month from the panels in mid summer, which is more power than we use (we don’t have A/C). Over an entire year, the system produces enough to provide for all of our electrical needs. It wasn’t cheap, but our main concern was reducing our carbon footprint.

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WCC Environmental Committee

I’ve been actively working with the Environmental Committee at WCC for several years. The environmental committee is comprised of faculty, staff, and students who are committed to improving how the college uses our resources and impacts the natural environment.

The committee currently is focused on:

• Education and awareness
• Recycling, reducing, and reusing
• Campus energy conservation
• Stewardship of the natural environments on campus
• Annual Earth Day Celebration in April
• Annual RecycleMania contest in February and March

If you have questions or ideas or you’d like to get involved, please contact me at: petty@wccnet.edu

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American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment

View a pdf file of the Presidents' Climate Commitment presentation or the Powerpoint presentation I gave at In-Service on August 27, 2008.

Learn more about the Presidents' Climate Commitment.

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My Sustainable Sabbatical

View a pdf file of a presentation on my sabbatical or a Powerpoint presentation I gave at In-service, January 6, 2009.

View a Sustainability Resource List—web sites, videos, books, articles and organizations related to sustainability.

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