Doug Boucher
Article for the January 2024 issue of the Monocacy Monocle
As the threat of climate change has become more and more evident, religious congregations have been reflecting on what they can do about it – not just as individuals but as communities of faith. Churches, synagogues, mosques and temples have found in their traditions of caring for creation, the inspiration to take action together, using the resources that they are blessed to share. In late January we will see one such action in our own small town, as St. Peter’s Episcopal Church inaugurates the new solar panel array on its rooftop.
The ceremony will take place at the church on Sunday, January 28th, immediately following the 10 am service. The solar panels, installed by Lumina Solar, will generate 76 kilowatts of clean energy and are projected to prevent the emission of 1,212 tons of carbon dioxide every year. And they’ll also help the church’s budget, with an estimated savings of $135,540 in electricity bills over the first 20 years.
St. Peter’s move to generate clean energy was made possible by an innovative public-private partnership between Skyview Ventures and the Montgomery County Green Bank. The Green Bank’s funding of a “Commercial Solar Power Purchase Agreement”, to the tune of $122,871, allowed St. Peter’s to go solar with no upfront cost. So, the action isn’t just good environmentally, but financially as well.
As I heard the story of St. Peter’s going solar, I was reminded of another church and another celebration that I attended on Earth Day back in 2022, in the eastern part of Montgomery County. This was for the community solar farm installed on the land of Cedar Ridge Community Church in Spencerville. After much discussion and prayerful reflection, the congregation of Cedar Ridge decided to dedicate 8 of its 63 acres for a solar project that would generate 2000 kilowatts of power. This provides renewable electricity to about 350 families, of which 30% are living on low or moderate incomes.
Cedar Ridge’s solar farm is screened by planted trees and shelters pollinator-friendly vegetation. It complements other faith-inspired uses of the church’s land, including a food-producing farm, bee hives, bird boxes, a nature trail through native woods (called a “prayer walk”), and four geocaches for outdoor enjoyment.
When I attended the Earth Day celebrations at Cedar Ridge, its pastors and congregation told me of the long period of “discernment” that led to the decision to adopt the community solar project. The congregants were proud of their long record of stewardship of their land and in particular of the beautiful meadow vegetation that blossomed with wildflowers each spring. But they came to feel that they could retain the natural beauty of the meadows while at the same time generating energy for their neighbors. As they wrote in summarizing why they came to a positive decision, “we are committed to ‘be the change we want to see in the world’ as we seek to make the world a better place – not just for ourselves, but for everyone.” And now they are proud to be able to see that they have the first community solar project hosted by a faith community in Maryland.
St. Peter’s step is part of the same movement to put faith in action in confronting the climate crisis through collective action. It’ll be the first religious institution in Poolesville to go solar, but hopefully not the last.
Everyone is invited to the church’s solar celebration on January 28th, starting around 11 am. St. Peter’s is at 20100 Fisher Avenue in Poolesville. There’ll be refreshments for young and old alike, the joy of doing good, and hopefully a very sunny day!