Solar panels for Langara’s T Building

Reported By William Crosby

Following a two-year delay due to a lack of funding, installation of solar panels on the T Building is expected to begin later this year.

The Langara Business Association has worked to raise the approximate $20,000 it will cost to have these solar panels installed, with the support of the school’s facilities department.

“The school has matched all funds raised, a member of the business faculty has donated a large sum of his own money, and the Langara school of management has helped give us base funds to put on small events,” Sterling Keful, president of the Langara Business Association, said.

Langara facilities director Dwayne Doornbosch said the T Building’s original design, which was awarded for its sustainable and energy efficient initiatives, intended to include solar panels in 2016.

“When the Science Building was built, the solar panels were not able to make the final budget, but all infrastructure was included at the time to minimize future costs,” Doornbosch said. “We plan to move ahead with the installation in 2018.”

Doornbosch said the panels will provide the school with clean, green energy for general use, while also reducing the overall power demand for the school.

Keful said the association is looking to have various types of solar panels installed in an accessible area on the roof, giving science students an opportunity to study them.

Csilla Tamas, an Applied Science for Engineering instructor, says that a prospective solar energy program at Langara could be introduced in the future.

“It is a possibility down the line – when I am not sure,” Tamas said. “If such a program would be created, it would probably involve the environmental studies department as well.”