Media Contact: Karl Walquist (775) 834-3891

New fluorescent lights installed in the gym at the Eagle Valley Middle School in Carson City are expected to reduce the school's annual electric bill by approximately $2,604 dollars.

Sierra Pacific Power awarded a $13,500 grant to the Carson City School District so it could replace the aging metal halide lights in the middle school gym with energy efficient T5 fluorescent lights that use about 48 percent less electricity. The grant was awarded through the utility's Sure Bet for Schools program, which provides funding for energy efficiency improvements at northern Nevada schools.

The new instant-on lights are brighter than the metal halide lights they replaced, and motion sensors that were installed as part of the project will automatically switch them off when the gym is unoccupied.

"Sure Bet for Schools offers excellent opportunities for Nevada schools to reduce their energy bills and in some instances the energy efficiency projects can be incorporated into the curriculum,"said Bruce Bullock, director of operations for Sierra Pacific Power's Carson region.

In 2005, Sierra Pacific allocated $320,000 to northern Nevada schools for energy efficiency upgrades and technical improvements. Approximately $270,000 has been budgeted for the Sure Bet for Schools program during 2006, Bullock said.

The grant check for the Eagle Valley Middle School project was presented to the school district by Sierra Pacific at its March Board of Trustees meeting.