Energy Conservation - Buildings and Grounds

Preamble and Statement of Commitment
Energy use – for heating, cooling, ventilation and lighting – generates greenhouse gases and other pollutants and reduces the world’s supply of non-renewable resources. Earlham strives to reduce its energy use and to improve the efficiency of its systems.

What Earlham has done and is doing about energy use on campus


Earlham burns natural gas and/or fuel oil for heating and uses electricity for cooling, lighting, and running motors which move air and water. Natural gas is supplied to the College through Vectren Energy transmission lines. Some natural gas is purchased from Vectren at current market prices but most is purchased directly from producers from November through March for future delivery at a fixed price. Annual use of natural gas is approximately 83 million cubic feet (86 billion BTUs) at a cost of $472,000 for academic year 2002-2003. There has been a decrease in natural gas use over time despite the addition of buildings on campus. In academic year 1978-1979, the campus used 76 billion BTUs at a cost of $176,000. Earlham is able to purchase natural gas at a low cost because it is "interruptible service", meaning that the college is required to switch to fuel oil heating in event of unusually high system demand for natural gas. The main campus buildings are served by a central boiler plant and steam distribution lines between buildings. Campus buildings vary widely in terms of within-building distribution between hot water and steam using radiators, unit ventilators, fan coil ventilators and forced air systems. In the summer, some buildings switch to decentralized domestic hot water. However, several buildings use steam for reheating air conditioned air in the summer to lower relative humidity; EH kitchen uses steam for cooking and dishwashing; and Stanley Hall requires steam for summer research.


Earlham purchases all of its electricity from Richmond Power and Light, a municipally-controlled utility. RP&L, in turn, generates electricity with generators powered by burning soft coal. Because its generating capacity is less than local demands, RP&L also purchases electricity from the grid. Most of the electricity used by Earlham is generated by coal-fired power plants. Annual use of electricity is approximately 13,000,000 kilowatt hours (kWh) at a cost of approximately $400,000.
Hence, reducing our demand for electricity and natural gas or fuel oil will decrease College expenses as well as reduce air, water and thermal pollution.


What Earlham has done and is doing about energy conservation on campus


Energy conservation is the least expensive and most convenient way to reduce Earlham's impact on the environment. Historically, the College has measured energy use only to the extent needed to determine financial costs. More can be done on an institutional basis.
Most low-cost energy conservation measures have been completed or are in progress.

  • A steam trap survey has been completed, indicating that the steam traps throughout the system and in the tunnels are generally in good repair.
  • Earlham has installed passive sensors across campus so that lights automatically turn on and off, depending on occupancy.
  • Earlham is a participant in the EPA "Green Lights" program and has made significant progress in installing energy-efficient lighting. Most old T-12 fluorescent tubes have been replaced with T-8 fluorescent tubes and incandescent and floodlights with compact fluorescents.
  • Power factor correction technology is being installed on motors. This adjusts electrical demand to yield a reduction in usage during periods of high demand on Richmond Power and Light.
  • A new high efficiency boiler was installed in 2004.
  • The College can measure the total amount of electricity passing through our substation to serve the main campus, and has separate energy use information for College-owned houses. But all other campus buildings are not separately metered. This means there is not information necessary for sound decision-making as to what are the most effective energy conservation strategies or technologies.
  • College computer laboratories are not shut down during lengthy periods of non-use. This was accepted practice until recently, but with improvements in computer hard drives and power sources, industry recommendations are now that machines are shut down if they are not going to be used for a number of hours.


Energy Production
Regardless of how much Earlham may reduce energy requirements, we will continue to need energy for cooling, heating, equipment and lights. Given our inability to directly affect the generating sources for electricity and the threatened sources of oil and natural gas, the College should investigate the feasibility of providing some fraction of our energy needs and do so in ways that are sustainable and environmentally friendly.

What Earlham has done and is doing on electrical use on campus

  • Earlham does not produce any electricity.
  • A project is currently under way to install a hybrid wind/solar electrical generation system on Dennis Hall. This will serve three purposes:
    • Provide some of Dennis Hall's energy needs.
    • Support a "greenspace" in the Dennis Hall lobby when real-time energy production and use data will be displayed along with related pollution information.
    • Provide data to allow analysis of whether similar energy production facilities might be practical elsewhere on campus.
  • A project is being considered to install a solar generation system at Miller Farm. Like the Dennis Hall alternative energy project, this will provide some of Miller Farm's energy needs, serve an educational purpose, and serve as a pilot test for the feasibility of similar installations elsewhere on campus.

 

What can students, faculty and staff do?

  • Turn off lights when not in use.
  • Make sure to keep temperatures in rooms set to low temperatures in the winter and high temperatures in the summer.
  • Turn off computers when they will not be in use.

Earlham Energy Awareness Program