As part of our mission, Breakwater embraces living well on the planet and respecting our environment. Thanks to the generous lead gift of $1,000 from the family of Jean Fraser, Chris Small, and alum Sabrina Small (Class of '13), and their enthusiasm for "living well on the planet" Breakwater established the Net Zero Fund in 2015. The original gift honored Sabrina's grandfather, J Perry Fraser who was an engineer and inventor who loved promoting solar energy. He enjoyed Grandfriends Day at Breakwater, where his granddaughter Sabrina attended school for 9 years.
Today, contributions to the Net Zero Fund continue to support efforts to reduce our carbon foot print at Breakwater. Gifts have helped to add a water bottle filling station on campus, install LED lightbulbs in classrooms, and improve our campus garden. During the Spring of 2021, Breakwater is taking an exciting new step towards reducing our carbon foot print by installing solar panels on the roofs of the Jessie building and Dan Crewe Gymnasium! Read the full communication linked below and learn more about an exciting community solar opportunity!
Contributions to the Net Zero Fund help to provide:
tools, seeds, and infrastructure to improve Sari’s Garden providing hands on experiences for toddlers-8th graders both during and after school;
solar panels for the Jessie and Dan buildings that will help provide sustainable energy for years to come (see updates below!);
maintenance for our convenient indoor and outdoor water bottle filling stations that allow the Breakwater community to reduce the amount of single use plastics;
initiatives across campus that reduce our carbon footprint.
COMMUNITY SOLAR OPPORTUNITY!
Breakwater and Relay Power are thrilled to announce a new partnership to fight climate change through Community Solar! Community Solar is a new program in Maine, aimed at making the benefits of solar more accessible and increasing the state’s adoption of renewable energy. Electricity production is the second largest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S. As a consumer, your choices make a difference — one simple way that you can support the transition to renewable energy is to join a local Community Solar farm.
Breakwater has already joined the program, and will be offsetting some of their usage with Community Solar! Plus, Relay Power will make a $100 donation to the Net Zero Fund for each sign-up that comes through this partnership.
If your home isn’t suitable for on-site solar, Relay Power can help you “go solar” without any installation by tapping into a nearby solar farm. It costs nothing to join, participants save about 15%, and it’s a simple process.
Visit relaypower.com/breakwater or call (207) 550-2118 to learn more!
READ THE FULL COMMUNICATION ABOUT BREAKWATER’S PLANS TO GO SOLAR BY CLICKING HERE
Spring 2022 Solar Project Update: Thanks to the generosity of our donors, we were able to begin construction on Phase One of our solar project! Phase One consists of installing a 12kW grid-tied solar electric PV system on the roof of the Jessie building. The Breakwater Board of Trustees conducted a year-long search before selecting Assured Solar to complete the project. Assured is a small, hyper-local provider who we felt would best serve our needs. The solar panels were installed during March/ April of 2022. Soon the panels will be able to offset about a 1/3 of the Jessie building's electricity needs - in terms of carbon footprint impacts, this project will be the equivalent of planting 2600 trees!
Looking ahead, Phase Two will include a much larger 35 kW array of solar panels on the roof of the Daniel Crewe Gymnasium (The Dan). This project will eventually be able to offset the electricity needs of the Dan by 75%! To support Phase Two of our project, click the 'Donate Now' button above. Thanks in advance for your support of this exciting project!
