Maryland Church Shines a Light on Solar Energy | Article

In 2016, the First Baptist Church of Glenarden, Maryland, was approached by two solar companies, Suntrail Energy and IGS Solar, that were looking to install solar panels on the church’s 160 acres of land. With more than 11,000 active members and three campuses in the communities of Landover, Glenarden, and Upper Marlboro, the First Baptist Church of Glenarden is one of the largest congregations in the Washington, D.C., area.

“The solar company did all the work for us,” said Church Elder Stanley Featherstone, who is also the director of facilities and strategic projects. “They gave us projections on how much energy the solar array would produce annually and how much we would save on our energy bills because of it. And so, we ended up partnering with Suntrail Energy and IGS solar for the design, engineering, and installation of the solar array.”

Two years later, the church turned on the 6,048-panel ground-mounted solar farm, which at the time provided 60 percent of the power needed for the entire Upper Marlboro campus, which includes the church’s 4,000-seat Worship Center, fellowship hall, chapel, and children’s and administrative wings. With a capacity of 2.06 megawatts (MW) and generating 2.9 megawatt-hours (MWh) annually, the solar energy project offsets the greenhouse gas emissions from the equivalent of about 444 passenger vehicles per year. When it was put in operation, the Upper Marlboro solar array was one of the largest solar projects built on the property of a faith-based institution in the world.

Thanks to a 25-year fixed rate power purchasing agreement—with no upfront costs—the church was easily able to finance the Upper Marlboro solar array and locked in a competitive rate for the energy generated by the panels. Because that rate is lower than the electricity price charged by the church’s utility, PEPCO, the church saves a lot of money, which can be reinvested into community programs and initiatives.

“The solar farm has generated almost $1 million worth of energy savings in the last three years,” said Featherstone. “Certainly, it was a beneficial undertaking by the church for the congregation and the community.”

Energized by the savings, the Black-led church wanted to build more solar panels to reduce its dependence on fossil fuels. Using the energy savings from the ground-mounted system and the continued partnership with the solar companies, the church installed rooftop solar panels on its other three centers: the Family Life Center (also located in Upper Marlboro) and the Ministry and Empowerment Centers (both located in Landover, Maryland).

Built in 2018, the Family Life Center was already designed to be a sustainable building. It includes energy-efficient windows, indoor and outdoor LED lighting, and a roof made of a heat-deflecting polymer material to reduce the use of air conditioning. Special materials in the facade and sidewalk aid with drainage. In 2019, the church flipped the switch on the center’s 45,000-square-foot rooftop solar array. With a 245 kW capacity and 308,046 kWh of annual generation, the solar panels are expected to offset 218 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions, which is equivalent to 47 gas-powered cars driven for a year.

Rooftop solar array on the Ministry Center in Landover, Maryland. Photo Credit: First Church of Glenarden

From there, the church installed a rooftop solar array on the Ministry Center, which is double the size of the Family Life Center, with a 500-kW capacity and 657,808 kWh of annual electricity generation. Covering a 60,000-square-foot area, the Ministry Center solar panels offset 466 metric tons of carbon dioxide and prevent emissions equivalent to those of 100 gas-powered passenger vehicles driven for a year.

Currently, the church is building a solar array that will cover the entire roof area of the Empowerment Center. It is expected to start operating in the fall. Covering about 50,000 square feet, the solar panels are expected to generate approximately 514,332 kWh of electricity and power most of the building’s energy usage. Once the solar panels are powered on, they will help offset 364 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions. The Empowerment Center, which holds important offices for the church, such as career services, community support services, and an emergency resource center, will also become more resilient to power outages.

With the addition of the Family Life Center, Ministry Center, and Empowerment Center rooftop solar panels, the church will cover more than 80 percent of its energy usage, inching close to having net-zero energy consumption. In total, the four solar arrays and the 3.2 megawatts of installed energy will generate more than 4.3 MWh of energy annually, or enough to cover the energy usage of 392 homes for one year.

Read all of our resources on energy efficiency for nonprofits.

Author: Miguel Yañez-Barnuevo