歪歪漫画

Laporte鈥檚 yellow school bus is going green.

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) to replace one diesel bus with an electric one. ISD 306 was one of seven grant recipients in 2023.

The electric bus and charging system costs roughly $400,000, Superintendent AJ Dombeck told the Laporte 歪歪漫画 Board at their Tuesday, April 9 meeting.

Beltrami Electric Cooperative offers a $10,000 rebate, he continued, plus there is a state tax credit available to schools for up to $40,000 to cover installation of the charger system and the electric bus purchase.

The district will have a brand-new bus for free.

The 2025 C-model bus travels 160 miles on a full charge. In extreme cold, Lion Electric said to expect a 25% decrease. Dombeck spoke with a superintendent in Montana who said the bus was 20% less efficient in 30-below weather. Laporte鈥檚 longest bus route is 72, according to Dombeck, so well within the shorter range of 120 miles in the winter.

It costs 41 cents per mile to use a gas-powered bus, Dombeck said, and slightly more for a diesel bus. 鈥淲e鈥檙e looking at 14 cents per mile estimated for the electricity costs.鈥�

It takes eight to 10 hours to fully recharge a dead battery, he added.

Dombeck recommended putting the electric bus on a shorter route for a trial basis.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 think we can pass up the opportunity to pick up a bus, powered by any method, for no cost to us,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 think there鈥檒l be hiccups along the way. I think it鈥檒l be a learning experience.鈥�

鈥淚t鈥檚 hard to beat free,鈥� agreed board member Joe Jarland.

The district currently has one diesel bus. 鈥淭he downside is it's our largest capacity bus,鈥� but its remaining lifespan is only two to four years, Dombeck said.

The board unanimously agreed to purchase the bus.

The MPCA grants are funded through a Volkswagen settlement agreement. In 2016, the German carmaker was caught cheating on emissions standards and violating the federal Clean Air Act by selling cars that emit air pollution over the legal limit. As part of the settlement, Minnesota is receiving $47 million, plus interest, between 2018 and 2027.

The grant requires Laporte 歪歪漫画 District to retain the electric bus for two years.

The school board also approved a 20-year agreement with iDEAL Energies LLC. The company, based in Bloomington, Minn., will install and maintain a solar panel system on the school鈥檚 roof.

鈥淚t would essentially cover most of what鈥檚 above the large gym,鈥� Dombeck explained.

Total installation cost is $162,500. The project was awarded an $84,000 Solar for 歪歪漫画s grant.

In 2021, the Minnesota State Legislature established the Solar for 歪歪漫画s program, administered by the Minnesota Department of Commerce.

鈥淭here were some tax credits that they were able to access on our behalf that offset some of the cost. It leaves about $68,000 left to pay, and has us paying that back on a schedule over the next 20 years,鈥� Dombeck said. 鈥淲hat we鈥檙e expected to generate (in electricity) will be roughly double what we pay to them to pay off the system.鈥�

The district will own the solar array.

Photo courtesy of iDEAL Energies LLC

Dombeck said it鈥檚 projected to produce 10% to 11% of the district鈥檚 annual electricity, mostly during the summer months. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not a huge savings. It鈥檚 also not insignificant,鈥� he said. 鈥淩ight now, at today鈥檚 prices, that鈥檚 $7,500.鈥�

Dombeck spoke with three other superintendents. 鈥淭hey all said it鈥檚 been very minimal, the maintenance.鈥�

iDEAL has a 30-year warranty on its solar panels, which are self-cleaning and can be recycled at the end of their lifespan. The average lifespan is 35 years.

Part of the grant requirements are an education curriculum and live solar-energy monitoring available in a public place. iDEAL currently provides a science-based curriculum geared for middle school and high school students and free web-based monitoring to all its school customers. Dombeck described this curriculum as the system鈥檚 鈥渂iggest benefit.鈥�

The district will be eligible for Beltrami Electric Cooperative鈥檚 net metering program. Generated energy will be sold to the cooperative based on a rate set by the state government, Dombeck explained.

The target date for substantial completion is Sept. 30, 2024.