After consulting its student body, Brookvale's St Augustine’s College has cut its greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent, following the installation of a 232kW high-performing photovoltaic system.

The reduction amounts to the equivalent of 11 buses being taken off the road, and some 225 tonnes in carbon emissions mitigated each year.

The solar farm sits atop of the fjmtstudio-designed Goold Building. Solahart was engaged to assist in creating the solar farm.

“Our College is committed to environmental sustainability and investing in renewables. The construction of our new Goold Building was a great opportunity to engage Solahart Sydney to install rooftop PV,” says Anthony Bataille, Director of Strategy and Compliance at St Augustine’s College.

A commercial-sized 232.26kW Solahart system with almost 600 solar panels was installed on the building’s roof. A consumption monitoring system was also installed to monitor consumption and performance. A SolarEdge DC inverter ensures that there are no live high-voltage cables inside the school building in the event of a blackout.

Bataille says the savings made in power bills will be reinvested to ensure the school continues to make itself more sustainable.

“Student voice is a priority at the College, with students being major stakeholders in the development of the College’s strategic intentions. Our students nominated making the College more environmentally sustainable as a key target in our strategic plan, and we are pleased this project helps us in achieving that goal,” he says.

“We are proud of making the switch to solar and allowing our students to see first-hand the benefits of renewable energy, and how the student body contributes to the growth and improvement of the College.”