California located Butte College has become the first college in the USA to earn the distinction of a grid positive institution. The college placed over a 928-acre wildlife refuge around 75 miles from Sacramento generates more power than its requirement utilizing solar arrays and transfers the excess power to the grid.
California's Butte College Becomes the First College in the Nation to Be Grid Positive
The solar installation installed at the college incorporates 25,000 solar panels and produces over 6.5 million kWh of electric power every year. The electric power generated from the installation is adequate to supply power to more than 941 average sized homes and it can be equated to taking off 615 passenger cars off the road.
The solar installation will enable the college to save around $50 million to $75 million in a period of 15 years even after apportioning for project expenditure, and interest, by the way of savings on electric power bills, income from the transfer of excess power to the utility and by averting escalation in future energy bills.
The other eco-friendly efforts of the college include use of community student transport facility, LEED certified buildings, inclusion of sustainability in the college curriculum, efficient land management.
Source: http://www.butte.edu