Energy

Light Fixtures and Large Appliances

In partnership with Efficiency Vermont, a survey of all light fixtures at Saint Michael's College is currently being undertaken; any fixture that is outdated and inefficient will be replaced.  This summer (2008) 100 13 watt CFLs have been installed in outside entry lighting areas, and 75 incadescent bulbs have been removed.  All residential buildings have T8 flourescent lighting.  All new appliances (such as air conditioners) are energy star.


Light Bulb Exchange Program

Standard light bulbs are being replaced with energy efficent (compact flourescent) light bulbs on a voluntary basis throughout the Saint Michael's College community (staff, faculty and students).  If you are a student and would like to exchange an old standard light bulb with a CFL, contact GreenUpSMC@smcvt.edu .  If you are a staff or faculty member and would like to exchange a bulb, contact hellis@smcvt.edu.  This program, so far, has resulted in the exchange of 643 CFL bulbs! (7/08).  Green Up SMC and the Sustainability Coordinator are also putting together a Go Green Welcome package for all incoming First Year students, which will include a CFL bulb!

If your CFL bulb burns out, please do not throw them in the regular trash, as they contain mercury they must be disposed of separately.  Please place a work order for them to be picked up.

3 Degree Challenge

Temperatures in Residence Halls and Academic Buildings will continue to be lowered within a target range of between 66 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit (for heating policy during the cold Vermont winters).

Information Technology Upgrades Server Software to reduce Energy usage

In partnership with Efficiency Vermont, the Server Department of Information Technology (IT) installed VMware.  VMware is a type of software that helps consolidate server systems.  This software has allowed IT to reduce hardware by a ration of 10:1 (10 servers have been reduce to 1!).  This software can reduce energy use by 80%!

Green Computing Tips

--Please remember to turn off your computers/laptops when you are not using them for a long period of time (especially when you leave work for the day/go to sleep).  Unplugging them saves even more energy!

--A common misconception is the belief that computers and monitors purchased with the Energy Star logo are already energy efficient.  In reality, they have been built-in energy conservation features BUT your computer/laptop cannot take full advantage of these built in energy savings mechanisms until the power management features are enabled and configured.

--The EPA has estimated that providing computers with sleep mode reduces their energy use by 60-70% -- and ultimately could save enough electricity each year to power Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine, and cut electric bills by $2 billion, and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by the equivalent of 5 million cars!  Go to your power management features and make sure sleep mode is enabled.  Also, make sure your monitor turns off after 15 minutes of inactivity.

Carbon Footprint


Saint Michael's alum, Owen Glubiak '08, focused his senior thesis on the economic implications for the college going carbon neutral.  Owen and fellow 2008 graduates, Jo Wildnauer and Colin Boyd, did a study on the college's carbon footprint for 2006/2007.  What a task!  The college has complete energy records from 2000 to present.  Sustainability Coordinator, Heather Ellis, will be adding to the great work of the students to complete a greenhouse gas emissions inventory from 2000 to present to analyze energy trends and observe the impact the great work of Green Up SMC and other dedicated members of the college has had.


Hit the Switch

Please remember to turn off all lights (and unplug them to reduce those pesky phantom loads) when you are not using them and are leaving the room.  Also, if you enter a room that has its lights on and no one is around, get good karma by shutting them off!

 

   


Did you know?

Energy Star appliances reduce your carbon footprint by 4,920 lbs of carbon dioxide per year!

Installing just one Compact Fluorescent light bulb (CFL) reduces one's carbon footprint by 300 lbs a year.

Unplugging appliances reduces your carbon footprint by 800 lbs a year.  Yes, unplugging appliances does make a difference, reducing those pesky phantom loads of electricity.

Screen savers may save your screens, but they do not save you any power, adding 1,090 lbs of carbon to your carbon footprint a year.  A more efficient option is to put the computer and monitor into sleep mode (go to your computer's power management option) after 15 minutes of inactivity.  This will use up to 70% less power.  FYI, even if your computer is energy star, you still need to enable these power management features.

You can save an extra 970 lbs of carbon dioxide a year just by remembering to turn off your lights when you leave the room.

 

Taken from "The Environmental Equation," by Alex Shimo-Barry, 2008