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Southern Oregon University’s future in renewable energy is coming into the light. More than 400 solar panels installed over the next few months are expected to increase the school’s energy-generating capacity by 57 percent. “We’re really excited for it,” said Roxane Beigel-Coryell, SOU’s sustainability and recycling coordinator. The three new installations will increase SOU’s number of solar arrays to eight. Combined, they are expected to produce 535,665 kilowatt hours per year. The first of the new arrays began to take shape on top of the Student Recreation Center’s storage building Tuesday morning. Sunlight streamed unhampered by clouds or smoke over the workers from True South Solar, the Ashland company in charge of installation, as they scrambled from one end of the roof to the other. Each solar array is funded by a different source or a combination of sources. The first array of 68 photovoltaic panels was funded by both the Student Recreation Center and the Outdoor Adventure Leadership Program; the second, 180-panel installation is funded as part of the combined “SRC/Lithia Motors Pavilion” construction project and will go on top of the recreation center. SOU student money is behind the third project by way of the student government-managed Green Fund. The Environmental Affairs Committee, housed within the Associated Students of Southern Oregon University, oversees the Green Fund. The fund was established when students began paying the Green Tag fee in 2007, the purpose of which is to pay for Renewable Energy Credits that offset the university’s costs for electricity and natural gas use. In the 2016-2017 school year, it cost each student $13 per term. “SOU’s actually been really fortunate that our students are really interested and dedicated to sustainability and they’ve been big drivers behind a lot of what we’ve done,” Beigel-Coryell said. The students’ 159-panel installation will go on top of Hannon Library and will directly power the building. The university will pay Associated Students of Southern Oregon University for that energy. “It took them about a year to really get people on board with what the idea was and to get all of the funding figured out and approved, but they really believe in this and they know it’s something that’s good for their future,” Beigel-Coryell said. SOU has led colleges nationwide in some aspects of its push to reduce reliance on fossil fuels and eliminate its carbon footprint. It was the first university in Oregon and among the first in the United States to offset its electric and natural gas costs through REC purchases — with the financial commitment of its student body, who approved it via a university referendum. It was the first university in the nation to offset 100 percent of its water usage by purchasing Water Restoration Certificates from Bonneville Environmental Foundation. Those certificates, administered by the foundation, each translate to 1,000 gallons of “water that directly contributes to restoring the economic, recreational and ecological vitality of national freshwater resources,” according to the foundation’s website. SOU also has a goal to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. As the university moves to increase the percentage of power it receives from solar infrastructure, Beigel-Coryell said, it also wants to reduce the amount of energy it uses. That involves more than money, however — a change of mindset also plays a part. “When we flip a switch, we don’t see everything that’s happening behind that and the environmental impact to get that power,” she said. Reach Mail Tribune reporter Kaylee Tornay at [email protected] or 541-776-4497. Follow her on Twitter @ ka_tornay .