St. James Episcopal Church and School, located in Potomac, Maryland, serves as a vibrant community hub offering worship services, fellowship, education and outreach ministries, including St. James Children’s School. Among its many dedicated members was John Combs, a key figure in the Church’s Care for Creation team. John’s unwavering passion for environmental stewardship was evident in his instrumental efforts to bring solar energy to St. James. His legacy of commitment and care will be deeply cherished.

The upcoming installation of a 41.7 kW rooftop solar PV system at St. James represents a significant step in honoring John’s vision. Over its first year of operation, the system will generate 47,695 kWh of clean, renewable energy. Installed by Solar Energy Services, this initiative is expected to have a lasting environmental impact, avoiding the consumption of 953,900 kWh of energy not sourced from the local utility provider and mitigating 676 metric tons of carbon dioxide and greenhouse gas emissions over the next 20 years. In addition to its environmental benefits, the system will provide substantial financial relief, with projected savings of $52,610 in electricity costs for the church and school over the same period.

The solar project will be financed through a 20-year Power Purchase Agreement between Skyview Ventures and St. James Episcopal Church. The Green Bank provided a $67,410 loan to Skyview to reduce the end costs to the Church and to increase the Church’s savings.

The Commercial Solar Power Purchase Agreement (CSPPA) program developed by the Montgomery County Green Bank allowed St. James’ Episcopal Church and School to install solar and experience the benefits of solar without upfront costs through a no money down rental agreement with Skyview Ventures. In this PPA, or rental agreement, Skyview pays for all maintenance and operations costs, while St. James only pays for the electricity produced by the solar system at a contracted price that is less than the current electricity costs from the utility provider.

The Montgomery County Green Bank has been working closely with Interfaith Power & Light on helping faith communities go solar. As a result of the Green Bank’s partnership with Interfaith Power & Light, St. James and 3 other Episcopal Churches have installed PV solar systems.

See ipldmv.org/solar for more resources from Interfaith Power & Light, including a map of existing faith communities with solar and a recording of an info session on solar for faith communities.