Campus Energy Use/Conservation Study
Ad Hoc Administrative Committee
Attending: John Brown, Cheryl Bullard, Bea Czogalla, Donovan Domingue, Renee Fontenot, Pam Glover, Mike Haun, Maureen Horgan, Paul Jahr, Kevin Murner, David Muschell, Doug Oetter, Steve Stork.
Identified others who should be invited to participate:
Students- someone from SGA, someone from Residence Halls
Custodial- Al Coby, superintendent
Staff Council- Chad Crabtree
History:
10 years ago, the Senate created an Energy Patrol, a group of people who would go around and look for open windows. Larry Smith and David Groseclose.
There were some issues with giving students access to security. Then Public Safety lost some positions.
There was a grant from US Dept. of Energy, using matching funds from the school of $0.5 million (from Cap Projects and MRR) to retrofit older buildings with newer lighting. We moved from T-12 bulbs to T-8 bulbs, and saved 20-25% on energy.
Needs:
Education Campaign. Need to provide campus with facts and information, both Proactive (teach them upfront) and Reactive (bust them when they don’t conserve!). Kevin & Pam have designed a door tag that custodians can use that will be hung on offices where someone leaves the lights on overnight, explaining that the average office consumes $7 of energy per day.
Newer lighting for Residential Halls. Sylvania and GE are scheduled for site visits. Even the new Halls can be re-fit with newer lighting. The pay-back period could be as short as 2-3 years.
Get Figures and Make a Measurable Goal. Try to craft an attainable goal of saving a certain number of kilowatt hours, gallons, BTUs, etc. Set a goal of reduction (5%, 10%). Determine where the best opportunities for reduction are. Kevin has a formula for Office Energy Generation. Develop rewards, benefits, incentives; maybe have a contest?!
Learn Information About Energy Use Activities. Figure how individuals influence total campus energy consumption. Personalize our energy use choices. Example: How much does it take to ride a Club Car across campus instead of walking?? Use the Carbon Footprint approach to convert usage into an area of Earth being co-opted <http://www.carbonfootprint.com/>.
Learn About Electrical Equipment Heaters, coolers, sensors, HVAC, air conditioning zones, etc.
Mission:
· Explore resources and grants for creating a Sustainable Campus
· Conduct an Energy Audit to find out where our energy dollars are going
· Link the Parking Program with campus gasoline usage, including staff, faculty, and student drivers
· Link Health Issues with energy use, for example encouraging alternative transportation like walking or biking
· Promote efficient use of materials by Pre-Cycling, thinking about sustainability during the purchase or bidding process
· Push Responsibility to a personal level
· Publicize Results
Work Ideas:
Create an Energy Committee web page with a link from INFO or MyCats. Include information on what we used last month, week, etc.
Create a list of Figures we want to have in front of us. Can we calculate the Carbon Footprint for our campus?
Make a Presentation for New Students and Faculty
Address Light Pollution