Christ Church To Host Solar Energy Fair

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Everyone is going green these days, including churches.

At Christ Church Uniting in Kailua, they sell reusable cloth bags, have changed all light bulbs to CFLs, and the church “Green Team” will host its inaugural Windward Oahu Solar Energy Fair from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. this Saturday.

“It’s the first time we’ve done it,“said event coordinator Paul Belanger, adding they also cut back on air conditioning and are now e-mailing the monthly newsletter to save paper.“I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s the first ever Windward solar fair. As part of our commitment to the community and to Earth we are committed to being as green a church as we possibly can - and that goes all the way from recycling to landscaping, to changing all the lights in the church.”

The free fair will have static and hands-on exhibits and presentations on photovoltaic solar systems, including their installation, net metering, sizing, financing, energy production of standard home systems and more. Oahu PV (photovoltaic) and solar contractors will exhibit their products, answer questions and help homeowners evaluate solar alternative energy. Workshops throughout the day will cover several important considerations about PV.

“Part of that effort is to look at harnessing the energy of the sun, reducing as much energy as we can. We want to get as many people to look at photovoltaic as we can; we’re also talking (solar) hot water, whatever is appropriate to their circumstances.

“There are a number of us who want to do our own private homes,” he added. “I’m looking at getting mine done in the next month or two.”

A California effort inspired CCU’s solar fair, explained Belanger. A group of neighbors in San Francisco calling themselves One BOG - One Block Off The Grid - decided to jointly look into purchasing PV systems for their homes at a discounted group rate. Christ Church Uniting also is anxious to establish itself as Windward Oahu’s “green church.”

“If we encourage people in Kailua to come to this fair, speak to area installers and contractors,maybe they might be able to help us get a savings in installation costs. It’s not cheap, so we can use all the help we can get.

“We’re trying to let the community know that this is something they ought to consider.It would seriously cut carbon emissions, reduce the load on electrical supply system for the Island.”

Charlene Hosenfeld, the CCU Green Team coordinator and author of Eco-Faith: Creating and Sustaining Green Congregations, also will attend the solar fair. She trained under Al Gore and has led several presentations on ecology.

“Charlene’s really big into this,“Belanger said,“and she’s got one heck of a slide show.”

Christ Church Uniting is located at 1300 Kailua Road. For more information, call 262-6911.