U California Berkeley Commits to 100% Renewables by 2050
The University of California, Berkeley's chancellor recently signed a memorandum of understanding committing the Berkeley campus to 100 percent renewable energy by 2050. This commitment covers purchased electricity as well as energy used for transportation and heating.
Three Schools Selected for Free Carbon Neutrality Program
The College of Saint Benedict, the University of Minnesota Morris and the University of St. Thomas have been selected to participate in Ever-Green Energy's pilot program: Roadmap to Carbon Neutrality. As part of this pilot program, the institutions will receive free energy and carbon neutrality planning services over the next year that will help them map out plans, evaluate feasibility and lay out next steps.
21 New York Universities Form RE Purchasing Coalition
Called New York Campuses’ Aggregate Renewable Energy Solutions (NYCARES), the newly formed consortium is comprised of 21 private and public higher education institutions and is working towards a goal of purchasing or producing electricity from 100 percent zero-net-carbon sources.
Carnegie Mellon U Building Achieves LEED Gold
The university's home for the Tepper School of Business features a 120,000-gallon cistern to collect rainwater for reuse and the floor of its four-story atrium uses radiant slabs to heat or cool the space.
Pennsylvania State U Announces 70 MW Solar Project
The university recently announced a partnership to develop a 70-megawatt solar-electric project that is estimated to provide 25 percent of Penn State’s state-wide electricity requirements over a 25-year term. The project will be ground-mounted using over 150,000 solar panels in three locations encompassing roughly 500 acres. The targeted completion date is set for July 2020.
Rhode Island College Installs 110 KW Solar-Electric System
The university's Donovan Dining Center and the Student Union now house a 110.9-kilowatt solar system. The $300,000 project is expected to save the college more than $231,000 in energy costs over the next 15 years, and is expected to generate 132,502 kilowatt-hours in the first operating year.
Amherst College Announces Climate Plan for Neutrality by 2030
At its January 2019 meeting, the board of trustees unanimously approved the college's Climate Action Plan, which calls for changing the campus energy infrastructure from a traditional fossil-fuel powered steam system to renewable electric heat pumps that use geothermal energy sources. The plan does not rely on the purchase of carbon offsets.
Brown U to Offset All Electricity Use With Solar & Wind
As a major part of a campus-wide effort to cut greenhouse gas emissions, the university has finalized agreements for two renewable energy projects. Projected to offset around about 70 percent of Brown’s annual electricity consumption generated through fossil fuels, the first project is a 50-megawatt photovoltaic facility that will be constructed on an old gravel pit. The second renewable energy project is an 8-megawatt wind power project being developed in Texas, which will offset the remaining electricity use.
Three Universities Win Energy Innovation Awards
The University of Maryland, University of Virginia, and University of California San Diego were recently recognized as the 2019 Smart Energy Decisions Innovation Award winners. The objective of the Innovation Awards program is to recognize the individual and collective efforts of large electric power users, their suppliers, and their utilities in support of the energy transformation currently taking place.
U Cincinnati Clermont College Becomes 100% Wind Powered
The university recently signed an agreement to purchase 100 percent of its electric supply with Green-e certified wind power renewable energy credits. This action is projected to reduce the university's total annual greenhouse gas emissions by 16 percent.
Rowan-Cabarrus CC to Install 1 MW Solar-Electric System
The 1-megawatt photovoltaic plant is expected to be completed by the end of January 2019. The community college will receive power-generation revenues and ground-lease payments, which will be used to fund programs such as student scholarships and professional development.
U California Berkeley Building Earns True Zero Waste Platinum & LEED Platinum Certification
Chou Hall at the Haas School of Business now has two Platinum certifications, one covering waste reduction efforts and the other for the building's energy-efficient design and operation. The True Zero Waste certification comes after more than a year of dedicated waste sorting, composting and other waste reduction efforts to divert over 90 percent of the building's landfill waste.
Joliet Junior College to Install 1.37 MW Solar Array
The college's board of trustees approved in December the installation of a 1.37 megawatt photovoltaic array on its main campus. There will be no out-of-pocket costs to JJC, which will initially pay a fixed discounted rate for the energy generated and take ownership of the panels after 10 years. Over its lifespan, the solar array is projected to save the college more than $1.1 million.
U Newcastle Procures 100% Renewable Electricity
(Australia) In response to feedback from students, staff and stakeholders who wanted to see the university increase its investment in renewable energy, the university recently signed a contract to purchase wind, solar and hydroelectric energy that will cover 100 percent of the university's electricity needs across its Newcastle and Central Coast campuses.
Western Technical College Building Remodel Achieves LEED Gold
The building, which was originally built in 1923, was remodeled in 2016. The project highlighted wide-ranging energy efficient building systems and extensive construction activity pollution protection. In total, Western’s efforts in all of its LEED facilities has led to a total cost avoidance of over $2.5 million.
Brandeis U Completes LED Retrofit
The recently completed lighting retrofit of the university's Carl and Ruth Shapiro Campus Center is expected to reduce the university's annual lighting costs by over $32,000 annually.
U Pittsburgh to Use Hydropower
The university has signed a letter of intent to purchase 100 percent of the power from a hydroelectric plant to be built on the Allegheny River. The facility will generate about 50,000 megawatt-hours of electricity annually, which is enough to supply about 25 percent of Pitt’s electricity needs.
Cloud County CC Students to Install 200 KW Solar Array
Students enrolled in the college's Solar Energy Technology program will install a 200-kilowatt photovoltaic array on single-axis solar trackers, which will increase electricity production efficiency. The system will be installed on campus-owned land.
West Texas A&M U Enters Energy-Efficiency Contract
The university entered a partnership for a $14.4 million Campus Energy Reduction and Modernization Project throughout 31 campus buildings. Scheduled for completion by September 2019, the conservation and modernization measures include high efficiency LED lighting, improvements to the campus heating and cooling systems, water conservation measures, and automated controls that allow for improved tracking of energy consumption.
UCLA Partners to Fund Water & Energy Research
Through a new partnership, UCLA and the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power will identify research that would move the city to greater use of recycled water, increase water and energy conservation and efficiency as well as electrification of the transportation network. The partnership also seeks to use and produce local water and strengthen climate adaptation planning.
College William & Mary Announces 2019-2024 Sustainability Plan
As part of the the university’s first long-range, comprehensive Sustainability Plan, the university has signed onto the Sustainable Endowments Institute’s Billion Dollar Green Challenge, pledging to grow its green revolving fund for environmental efforts from $200,000 to $1 million by 2025. Other components of the W&M Sustainability Plan include a commitment to creating a climate action plan by 2020 and exploring renewable energy for the campus. Individual departmental efforts include elimination of single-use plastics by dining services and implementation of electric vehicle charging stations by transportation.
Wellesley College Commits $24M to Energy Initiatives
Based on recommendations from a task force assembled to assess the energy needs of the college, the board of trustees has committed approximately $24 million to be spent over the next three years on a multipart energy initiative. The college will make the following improvements in its buildings and central utility plant: replace the steam absorption chiller plant with an electric chiller plant; decommission five natural gas electricity generators and increase renewable energy; construct a power plant that will generate electricity during peak electrical-use periods and during power grid failures; and improve energy efficiency in campus buildings.
Dalhousie U Opens Biomass Energy Plant
The new Biomass Energy Plant is a $26.5 million project that burns biomass fuel to create electricity using a new 1-megawatt turbine. Additionally new piping for a district hot water system was installed that will use waste heat from electricity generation to heat the campus. Overall, the steam system is now 30 percent more energy efficient.
Bucknell U Building Earns LEED Silver
The repurposed Hildreth-Mirza Hall, a building that originally opened in 1941 as a fraternity house, features occupancy sensors, air quality monitors and automated ventilation systems. Together, these measures reduce the building's energy consumption by 35 percent.
U Maryland Pilot Project Cleans Water & Produces Energy
Helping to keep pollution out of the Port of Baltimore and the Chesapeake Bay while providing a pollution-free source of renewable energy, a university research pilot project harvests algae that is used to filter pollution from water and turns it into biogas, which is used to power flood lights at the algae digester site.
U Virginia Saves $750K Through Energy Savings Measures at Clark Hall
After a team of UVA engineers, technicians and specialists who focus on conserving resources reviewed and retrofitted the systems of the university's Department of Environmental Sciences, and Science and Engineering library, the university achieved a 67 percent reduction in energy costs, saving about $750,000 annually. Energy-saving measures included converting all lighting to LED lamps, installing low-flow toilets and sink aerators, upgrading the HVAC system, repairing the energy recovery system, and recalibrating airflow rates in labs to provide correct ventilation for the space. The building earned LEED V4 Existing Buildings O+M Silver certification.
Kansas State U Buys Wind Energy
The university has signed a 20-year agreement to receive approximately 50 percent of the electricity needs for the university's main Manhattan campus from a nearby wind farm. It is estimated that the new deal will save the university nearly $200,000 annually. Kansas State University is one of 14 Kansas organizations that will receive electricity from the 300-megawatt Soldier Creek Wind Energy Center.
U Technology Sydney Purchases Electricity From 32 MW Solar Farm
(Australia) The university has signed a renewable energy power purchase agreement for the output of a 32 megawatts of electricity from a solar farm in northern New South Wales. The university will purchase the equivalent of half its annual electricity demand.
Salem State U Arts Building Achieves LEED Gold
The Sophia Gordon Center for Creative and Performing Arts demonstrates a 28 percent energy cost reduction and achieves a 32 percent reduction in energy consumption compared to a baseline building. More than 75 percent of the existing building structures were reused. The entire project site was redesigned to improve building accessibility and public entry.
Salem State U to Install 387 KW Solar Electric With $193K Grant
As part of a $5 million solar grant program launched earlier this year by the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources, Salem State is receiving the first award of $193,500 for three photovoltaic systems totaling 387 kilowatts. Estimated to save the university $28,500 in annual electricity costs, the installations are projected to generate 439,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity through a 20-year third-party power purchase agreement with no upfront costs.
Southern Illinois U Carbondale Launches Green Office Program
The new Green Office SLEUTH (Student-Led Energy-Use Treasure Hunts) program is a joint project of the university's Sustainability Office and the Advanced Coal and Energy Research Center. Selected students will work with campus offices to find ways to reduce energy use and adopt good recycling techniques. At the end of the program, students receive $500 and a certificate at the completion of the assignment.
U Notre Dame Installs 2-Acre Green Roof
Home to the Fighting Irish Athletics Department, the building now has a 79,096-square-foot vegetative rooftop. The layout consists of 25 plant species, including 22 varieties of sedum. A rooftop irrigation system also was installed.
U Notre Dame to Close Coal Plant One Year Early
Last month, the senior director of Utilities and Maintenance said the campus power plant will cease burning coal sometime in 2019, one year ahead of the initially predicted deadline in 2020. This recent decision is a direct result of the Comprehensive Sustainability Strategy, a multi-pronged plan for a more sustainable campus. The strategy, created by a standing committee of faculty, administrators, undergraduates, graduate students and campus staff, is organized into six areas of focus: energy and emissions; water; building and construction; waste; procurement, licensing and food sourcing; and education, research and community outreach.
UCLA Wins National Athletic Sustainability Award
The University of California, Los Angeles was the winner of the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics and USG Corporation Sustainability Award for its work on the Wasserman Football Center. The award was designed to recognize NACDA member institutions across all divisions, honoring athletics directors and their universities for incorporating sustainable practices and materials into their athletics facilities. Bentley University and Georgia State University were finalists, receiving $10,000 each in USG product while UCLA received $40,000 in USG product.
U Rochester, RIT & Suffolk County CC to Receive $1M Each for Clean Energy Projects
Governor Andrew M. Cuomo recently announced that New York State will award nearly $1 million each to the University of Rochester, Rochester Institute of Technology, and Suffolk County Community College as part of the Energy to Lead Competition. The competition challenges New York colleges and universities across the state to develop plans for local clean energy projects on campus and in their communities.
Maharishi U Management Receives $200K Grant to Conduct Solar Array Comparisons
In addition to providing a third of the electricity on campus, the university’s new 1.1 megawatt solar array will be compared to another solar array in Iowa. Funded by the Iowa Economic Development Authority, the $200,000 grant will enable evaluation of return on investment, operation and maintenance issues, battery performance, and effectiveness of solar tracking. A state-level committee will evaluate the findings of this research project and consider how to widely apply the lessons learned.
U Virginia Connects 17 MW Solar Facility
The 17 megawatt UVA Hollyfield Solar facility was connected last month. The university and Darden School of Business are purchasing the entire output of electricity produced at the 160-acre solar facility for the next 25 years from Dominion Energy. The project is expected to produce 12 percent of the university’s electric demand. The Darden School is assuming responsibility for about 25 percent of the electricity production, which enables the school to achieve its long-term zero-carbon goal.
U Nebraska Enters 5-Year Partnership to Save Energy
Recommended by a university-wide committee and approved by the Board of Regents in June, a new five-year partnership with an energy-efficiency company aims to find energy savings across the university's campuses through technology- and behavior-based strategies. Each month during the partnership, the university will pay the company 50 percent of total energy savings realized during that month that resulted from the firm’s recommendations.
Monash U to Deploy Microgrid With Storage
(Australia) Building upon the university’s $135 million commitment to reach net zero emissions by 2030, the university is partnering with the Australian Renewable Energy Agency to build a microgrid that will control a minimum of 1 megawatts of solar panels, 20 buildings, electric vehicle charging stations and 1 megawatt-hour of energy storage. The goal is to demonstrate how a 100 percent renewable electricity system can operate reliably and the value it can provide to consumers and the broader energy network.
Michigan State U & U California Win 2018 Green Power Leadership Award
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency bestowed its Green Power Leadership Award to the two universities for their efforts in advancing the voluntary green power market. MSU hosts the largest solar photovoltaic carport system in the U.S. through a long-term power purchase agreement and operates an anaerobic digestion system that turns dairy farm and dining hall food waste into renewable energy. UC increased its voluntary green power use by 40 percent system-wide, completed 12 new on-site solar projects, and hosts more than 40 megawatts of on-site solar capacity with photovoltaic systems at every campus.
Pennsylvania State U Announces 2 MW Solar Project
The two-megawatt utility-scale photovoltaic project will provide one percent of University Park's campus electric needs. Included in the project will be an educational kiosk supporting academic instruction and research, sharing real-time performance data of the array.
U Minnesota Twin Cities Installing Solar at 9 Campus Sites
The nine sites span the East Bank, West Bank and St. Paul campuses. According to the Environmental Protection Agency’s Green Power Equivalency Calculator, the electricity generated from the nine locations will produce enough energy annually to power 224 homes. In addition to the new on-site solar panels, the university also purchased more than 20 megawatts of community solar power from outside sources.
