If you walk around Secaucus today, you may notice something interesting when you look up. Solar panels are beginning to dot the roofs of buildings, from school and homes to municipal facilities and warehouses.

But this no random trend. It’s part of the town’s plan to create a solar-powered Secaucus that city officials say may save the town more than $1.2 million over the next 15 years.

“We’re trying to install solar panels wherever possible,” said Town Administrator David Drummeler. “We want to reduce our cost of electricity and our dependency on fossil fuels.”

Secaucus began its solar power initiative in 2011, when the town submitted a proposal to the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission to be a member of a 15-year co-op pilot program.

NJMC brought contractors into Secaucus to evaluate what areas would be good for solar panels, Drummeler said. They concluded that Secaucus High School, Huber Street Elementary School and the parking lot at the Secaucus Municipal Building would be ideal.

According to the NJMC, the municipal parking lot solar canopy will provide $253,293 in savings while providing 26.8 percent of the total electricity needed to power the building.

The solar panels at Secaucus High School are projected to save the town $658,641 over the 15-year period and provide 18.4 percent of the building’s electricity during that span. Meanwhile, Huber Street Elementary — which has the largest solar array in town — should see 91.3 percent of its electricity come from its solar panel over the 15 years, while saving the town $349,068.

“In 15 years, hopefully, we will be more of a self-sustaining community,” said Secaucus Environmental Coordinator Amanda J. Nesheiwat. “Hopefully, we will be able to get ourselves off the power grid by providing renewable energy but also by reducing the amount of energy we use as a community and just being as self-sustaining as possible.”

Drummeler believes savings are likely to increase as solar technology improves.

“Solar panels are not very efficient,” said Drummeler. “Good solar panels are about 18 percent efficient in converting light into electricity. With 18 percent efficiency these are the savings we’re getting. Imagine what we could save with 50 percent efficiency in a few years.”

The town is also encouraging residents and businesses to switch to solar energy and has gotten private real estate developer Hartz Mountain, which owns large swaths of land in Secaucus, to begin installing solar arrays on the roofs of their warehouses, according to Drummeler.

Hartz spokeswoman Marjorie Kaplan said Hartz has installed solar panels on 16 commercial buildings generating enough electricity to power 2,700 New Jersey homes.

“From my house I can look out my front window and see an array of panels on many roofs,” said Drummeler. “The hope is that the more people see solar panels, the more mainstream they will become and more part of our community.”

Drummeler said the success of the NJMC co-op has led Secaucus to enter into a new partnership with PSE&G, which will install solar panels on municipal properties and pay a rental fee.

— Follow Matthew Speiser on Twitter @Spyzguyz