It was announced on Friday that the school will have a wind turbine installed on its roof this spring.

The school joins Our Lady of Mercy Catholic School in Honey Harbour, St. Peter the Apostle Catholic School in Parry Sound, Saint Mary Catholic School in Huntsville and St. Joan of Arc Catholic in Barrie in the Simcoe Muskoka District Catholic School Board program.

These schools were selected because of the winds from Georgian Bay. The cost of the wind turbines is $309,000.

The wind turbines are manufactured by Cleanfield Energy, a Hamilton-based company and are designed to produce 3.5 kW, or power three to four classrooms.

The vertical axis turbines are 10 feet high and weigh more than 540 pounds.

Cleanfield CEO Tony Virelli said the turbines are designed for urban environments.

"We've been developing this technology for quite some time," he said. "It's a very small system and is ideal for schools."

He said because of the small design, there isn't a major concern with noise.

"This system, you're not going to be able to hear it at all," he said.

St. Mary's has been recognized as a gold school for its green initiatives, including the installation of an environmental team.

"Our board has a strong focus on supporting green initiatives and that is why our plant department submitted a proposal to the Ministry of Education to install wind turbines at some of our schools and we are excited that our proposal was accepted," said Glenn Clarke, plant controller for the Simcoe Muskoka District Catholic School Board. "We thought it would be a an innovative and effective way to demonstrate our commitment to being stewards of God's creation."