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| Oberlin
College notes that U.S. citizens spend more than 90% of their
lives inside buildings.
Residential and commercial buildings account for two-thirds
of the electricity used in the U.S.; 36% of U.S. greenhouse
gases; 9% of world greenhouse gas emissions; and 12% of U.S.
fresh water consumption.
Activities that take place within buildings account for
over 90% of the energy used on the Oberlin College campus.
As part of an effort to create a more sustainable campus,
Oberlin installed a feedback system on dorm water and
electricity use. The premise of the feedback system is that
providing dormitory residents with easily interpretable
real-time feedback on electricity and water consumption -- and
on the financial and environmental impact of this consumption
-- will motivate and allow students to conserve resources.
Currently, electricity is monitored in 21 dormitories and
student houses. Electricity consumption for 16 of them is
displayed in real time on a custom-designed web site: www.oberlin.edu/dormenergy/
During a two-week dorm energy competition at Oberlin held
in 2005, dorms on average reduced electricity use by 32%. The
two dorms with real-time feedback won with 56% reductions in
electricity. |
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| For
more information, contact Scott Wargo, director of news
service, 440/775-8474, scott.wargo@oberlin.edu. |
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| In
recent years, Amherst College has installed energy metering
systems in many of its newly built or renovated residence
halls, and begun using data from this metering to keep score
in friendly "energy competitions" among the
buildings’ communities. In addition to enabling
administrators to monitor student energy usage, the contests
make it attractive to students on a very fundamental level to
pay attention to just how much energy they waste: The building
that is able to reduce its consumption by the highest
percentage per person over a four-week period is awarded a
pizza party. And while the college has not yet installed the
technology to provide students with real-time data displays,
Director of Facilities Jim Brassord says he is considering it
for the future--given the popularity of the energy
competitions and especially the pizza parties. |
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| For
more information, contact Caroline
Jenkins Hanna, director of media relations, Amherst College,
413/542-8417, channa@amherst.edu.
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| The
college has installed an energy monitoring system in its new
student housing. The touch screen provides information on
student programs, recycling, the environmental attributes of
how the building was constructed, information on utility usage
and costs for the college as a whole, and live energy
monitoring (heating, electricity, and hot water) for the dorm.
Computer screens are located next to the elevator, main
lounge, and kitchen. Bates anticipates that all new residence
halls will have this energy monitoring feature. |
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| For
more information, contact Julie
Rosenbach, environmental coordinator, 207/786-8367, jrosenba@bates.edu;
or Bryan McNulty, director of communications and media
relations, Bates College, 207/786-6328, bmcnulty@bates.edu. |
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| Student
energy monitoring will be part of a sustainable living
community at Barrett, the Honors College at Arizona State
University, which recently broke ground. It will have an
entire building devoted to sustainable practices including
organic garden space, solar panel roof panels, an interactive
green roof, dual-flush toilets, and reusing shower and sink
water to irrigate the surrounding landscaping.
Energy, A/C, and domestic water metering in buildings will
allow students the opportunity to monitor their energy use and
adapt intelligently.
Students living within the sustainable community at Barrett
also will have the opportunity to earn a certificate from the
new School of Sustainability. The complex as a whole will be
LEED Silver certified with various sustainable features like
operable windows in all rooms. It will be complete by Fall
2009.
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| For
more information, contact Mark
Jacobs, Barrett dean, 480/965-2354, mark.jacobs@asu.edu;
Jessica Peet, student, Barrett Honors College Council vice
president, 717/965-6889, jessica.peet@asu.edu;
or Sarah Auffret, assistant director of media relations,
Arizona State University, 480/965-6991, sarah.auffret@asu.edu.
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| Through
an energy management system, Binghamton University can monitor
real-time electricity consumption building by building. This
capability was put to the test last year when Binghamton ran
its first Energy Conservation Contest, pitting residential
communities against one another to see which group of students
could save the most electricity. During the five-week
competition, the management system helped monitor consumption
in each community’s electricity usage.
The overall winner, Mountainview College, saved more than
11 percent in electricity use per student over the five-week
period. The annual equivalent savings for the contest amounted
to more than $88,000. With the university’s electricity bill
for a single day topping $25,000, creative conservation
efforts such as the energy contest are key to keeping costs in
check. Organizers are already gearing up for the next contest,
which is scheduled to take place during the spring 2008
semester. |
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For more information, contact Gail
Glover, director of media relations, Binghamton University,
607/777-2174, gglover@binghamton.edu.
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| Over
the past couple of years Case Western Reserve University has
been working to add energy monitoring meters to each of its
campus buildings, allowing students and others to better
manage their energy use.
These meters provide the
university real-time energy consumption data for individual
buildings and areas of campus. Although a significant
financial investment up front, individual metering and the
feedback that the
real-time data provides "has been instrumental in raising
the campus awareness of the impact of our current
behaviors," says Linda Robson, Finance &
Administration Fellow for Energy Studies.
An example of how energy
monitoring has benefited the campus occurred this summer.
Dealing with high temperatures (in the mid to upper 90s) and
high humidity for several days, Case Western Reserve ran the
risk of moving into an energy threshold zone of consumption,
due to the extra demand for cooling. Using the real-time,
online data capabilities, Facilities Services partnered with
Case Daily, a daily university-wide e-newsletter, to share
information about the situation and to request people to turn
off lighting and pieces of equipment (large and small) that
were unnecessary. "Campus buy-in and response was quick.
We closely monitored campus graphs over that day and watched
as the campus turned itself off, moving us back down to more
manageable levels of energy use," says Robson.
Case students are able to
monitor energy usage for most of the campus’ buildings
through the on-line system found on the university’s
Facilities Services home page (Campus Real Power and Village
at 115, Case’s LEED certified residential village): www.case.edu/finadmin/plantsrv/ |
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| For
more information, contact
Linda Robson, Finance &
Administration Fellow for Energy Studies, 216/368-5328, linda.robson@case.edu;
Gene Matthews, director of Facilities Services, 216/368-2580, ecm4@case.edu;
or Jason Tirotta, News and Information specialist, Case
Western Reserve University, 216/368-6890, jason.tirotta@case.edu.
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