NEW YORK– Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer released a report on Thursday how installing solar panels on the roofs of New York City public schools could benefit the community.
The installation of the panels could create over 5,400 green-collar jobs and will “create the economy that we need so desperately,” stated Stringer.
According to data compiled by Stringer’s office, installing the panels on almost 1,200 public school rooftops could generate 169.46 megawatts of clean renewable electricity and eliminate over 76,600 tons of carbon from the air each yea—the equivalent of planting over 400,000 trees.
The future mayoral candidate for 2013 also said that according to estimates from CUNY, half of the city’s peak energy supply could be generated if every rooftop had solar panels, which would reduce energy bills and save tax dollars for decades.
Currently, New York City privately and publicly only generates 6.5 megawatts while New Jersey has become the fastest growing market for solar energy in the nation. Stringer hopes New York will take the lead role in the industry, “This is a revolution, and we want to be at the front of it,” said Stringer.
