Jun. 15—CARL JUNCTION, Mo. — The Carl Junction School District will receive a $1 million low-interest loan from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources’ Energy Loan Program, the agency announced last week.

The loan will assist the school district with an energy efficiency project that includes upgrading school buildings to LED lighting.

The project will result in annual energy savings of approximately $117,918, DNR said in a statement. In addition, the project will reduce electricity use by more than 896,191 kilowatt-hours, avoiding nearly 626 metric tons of carbon dioxide pollution, which equates to removing 149 passenger cars from the road for a year.

The district will repay the loan with money saved on energy costs.

“Communities have a duty to be good financial stewards and reduce energy usage where possible,” Dru Buntin, director of the DNR, said in a statement. “Well-designed energy efficiency projects make a huge impact by enabling those communities to lower energy consumption and redirect funds to other projects to benefit residents.”

Since the Energy Loan Program’s inception in 1989, the department’s Division of Energy has awarded more than 620 loans representing more than $118 million in completed energy efficiency projects and more than $235 million in estimated cumulative energy savings.

Low-interest loans are provided to public schools, public higher education institutions and local governments.

Loan financing may be used for various energy-saving investments such as insulation, lighting systems, heating and cooling systems, combined heat and power, pumps, motors, aerators, renewable energy systems and other measures that reduce energy use and cost.

To learn more about the Energy Loan Program, go to dnr.mo.gov/energy/grants-loans or contact the Missouri Department of Natural Resources’ Division of Energy at 573-751-2254.