The Quakers, a religious group known for being peaceful, also wants to make friends with the environment. The Friends Center in Center City, Philadelphia is turning into the first major building in the city to convert to geothermal power. The project is (so far) projected to cost $1.3 million dollars, but would pay itself back in no fuel costs in six to eight years.
Using geothermal power is the highlight of the Friends Center's greening. They also are:
- using rainwater holding tanks to operate the toilets (Philly gets a lot of rain)
- growing plants on the roof ("green roof")
- installing solar panels
Digging The Wells
Geothermal power (geo-exchange) is usually frowned on in cities as it takes an incredible amount of money to dig the wells used to get the pumps operational. The Friends center needs several wells drilled 1,500 feet deep. It is also far more expensive to convert an already existing building to geothermal power than to incorporate it into a new building. As the cost of fossil fuels skyrockets, more than just environmentalists are looking at how the Friends project fares.
Other Area Examples
However, there are many smaller buildings in the Philadelphia and South New Jersey area that are already running on geothermal power, installed a couple of years ago. They are claiming that they are now reaping the financial rewards of the monumental initial investment for the wells. They also use solar panels, green roofs and other renewable sources of energy. Buildings in the area include:
- Camphill Village Kimberton Hills
- Radnor Middle School
- Richard Stockton College of Pamona, New Jersey
So, not all Americans eat fossil fuels like popcorn. Although a few buildings here are and there might not seem like much, for anyone to voluntarily take on such a project during the recession can be seen as a promising start.
