Praise for Greens' solar energy policy

The Green Party wants to invest $20 million in the installation of solar power in 500 schools across the country with its policy Solar in Schools.

A successful election for the Green Party this Saturday could result in environmentally friendly schools for more Wairarapa children - and a greater awareness of alternative sources of energy.

The party seeks to invest $20 million in the installation of solar power in 500 schools across the country with its policy "Solar in Schools."

While the programme is open to both primary and secondary schools, certain criteria have to be met to benefit from the policy. This will include being of a lower decile, what they pay at the time for power and how many sunshine hours they get.

Wairarapa Green Party candidate John Hart believes the scheme presents an "exciting" opportunity to teach a new generation about alternative sources of energy.

Masterton's Douglas Park School has already installed solar power, and teacher Gareth Sinton says the children have been eager to learn about "greener" ways of living and monitoring the school's energy savings.

"Having the solar panels has encouraged discussion around responsible energy use," said Mr Sinton.

"In our newsletters we publish how much solar power we have generated and we have a team of students in charge of promoting the system within the school."

He said schools keen to benefit from the policy should not see it as a simple solution to high power bills. "With a system the size of ours (two kilowatts), there hasn't been a significant decrease in what we pay for power."

Despite the possibility of only small savings, Lisa Malones, principal of Tuturumuri School, remains interested in the policy.

She said if the school was to save $50 a month over a year on power, that would almost be enough to fund the school's yearly numeracy equipment.

"Any savings, no matter how minimal, would be welcomed - the money would go straight back to the kids."

Ms Malones explained that Tuturumuri School already makes a significant effort to teach its students about renewable energy.

"Not only do we teach a unit on renewable energy, but we are stringent recyclers, house an extensive vegetable garden and have a number of policies to limit power usage," she said.

"The addition of solar power to the school would be another mechanism that promotes environmental awareness."