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Jennifer Smith, left, a junior at Mill Creek High School, and Fallon Warpe, a senior at George Walton Christian Academy, get a sneak peek at the new student ministry space at CrossPointe Church in Gwinnett, scheduled to open for use April 13. The construction of the new area includes high-efficiency lighting and low flush toilets as part of a concious effort to be more environmentally friendly.
Some Southern Baptists are discovering that changing a few light bulbs, installing low-flow toilets when old ones break, and planting more shrubbery actually saves them money in the long haul.
While many congregations cannot retrofit their buildings because of age – some structures are more than 200 years old – other churches are finding they can make changes that are more friendly to the environment and their budget.
For example:
• Cross Pointe Church in suburban Atlanta, where former SBC president James Merritt is pastor, has been making a “pretty conscious effort” to recycle as much as possible of the materials used in a remodeling effort. Steve Overcash, church administrators, says the church is also using more energy efficient lighting and installing low flush toilets and waterless urinals that use much less water.
Both Graham and Merritt signed the Southern Baptist Declaration on the Environment and Climate Change and are encouraging others to be more sensitive in protecting God’s creation.
• The Georgia Baptist Missions and Ministry Center in Duluth is one of the most energy efficient buildings in the state – partially due to government requirements and partially to the desire to meet and exceed those requirements. Building engineer Damon Lowder says the structure is slightly larger than the previous building but uses two-thirds less power.
The pond, once drought restrictions are eased, will provide 80 percent of the irrigation needs of the landscape. The savings means more missions dollars can go to reaching the state for Christ rather than for building operating costs, he added.
• Prestonwood Baptist Church in Plano, Texas, pastored by Jack Graham, implemented an energy conservation program that involved, among other things, changing light bulbs and altering water usage. Since then, the church has saved more than $1.5 million on utility bills, church officials say.
• Southeastern Seminary in Wake Forest, N.C., implemented a similar plan in the last three years and saves approximately $225,000 a year, President Danny Akin says. Among the changes, Southeastern has saved 1 million gallons of water by installing low-flow toilets, faucets, and showerheads to reduce water consumption and also did a large-scale change-out of the lights, installing high-efficiency fluorescent fixtures. The school replaced old thermostats in many of the dorms with newer ones.