by Bruce Perlson
A dive into its financial records shows St. Barnabas has achieved a significant reduction in annual utility costs—electricity, natural gas, and water costs—since 2008, in spite of increased use of the building by outside groups, and a growing and increasingly active congregation.
In 2013, the church began recording the annual costs of each utility, rather than the aggregate cost. These data show that reduced electricity use is responsible entirely for the reduction in utility costs since then.
The most obvious change in how the church uses electricity is its lighting systems, as it transitioned to higher efficiency LED technology. Particular credit goes to Tom Kirkpatrick and his staff at ECO Engineering for helping the church make the efficiency improvements, along with the members of the “Termites” responsible for implementing the various projects.
Further reductions in electricity use remain possible, as several areas of the church continue to be lighted by older technology. Additionally, the church is beginning the process of replacing its aging and sometimes failing heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) units, where reductions in both electricity and natural gas usage are available.