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CASE STUDY: Eff ic iency & Education — Metro

Going All Out at Macalester College: EnergySaving Projects, Workshops & TrackingBy Rosie Mate, Metro CERT Assistant • April 2012

February is not only the start of the semester atMacalester College, but also the campus’ energy-themed month. Suzanne Savanick Hansen and hercrew of sustainability students hit the ground running this winter with workshops and a host ofnew resources for the campus community.

The Macalester Sustainability Office is one of thenewest Metro CERT affiliates, and they have beenquickly finding opportunities to partner together. InJanuary, the Macalester Sustainability Office hosted a“January Thaw” workshop for faculty and staff oncampus. The program was an opportunity to reporton Macalester’s progress with the American Collegeand University President’s Climate Commitment(ACUPCC) to reduce the campus’ greenhouse gases,and to start a conversation about energy conserva-tion actions on campus and at home.

The Macalester Sustainability Office’s work is prima-rily motivated by the American College andUniversity Presidents’ Climate Commitment. Thecommitment included conducting an emissionsinventory for the Macalester campus and drafting asustainability plan to help meet campus-wide emissions reduction goals. The goals are to reduceemissions from 2008 levels 17.5% by 2015,

35% by 2020, and 52% by 2025. In 2025, the campuswould need to offset the remaining emissions for climate neutrality. Macalester has been tracking theiremissions since 1990 and their efforts are paying offwith a promising downward trend in recent years.Approximately two thirds of campus emissionscome from heat and electric, making energy conser-vation a high priority.

February 2012 brought several additional energyevents to campus. One of the events was a work-shop for homeowners where the Macalester

Sustainability Office invited Neely Crane-Smith from Centerfor Energy and Environment to present on residential energy efficiency. The second event was aworkshop for student renters. Therenter workshop was run by JuliaEagles from Metro CERT as partof their effort to improveresources for renter communities.The student workshop providedinformation on what to look forwhen choosing a rental property,renter rights in terms of mainte-nance and repair, and lots ofrenter-friendly ways to conserve

Portland Apartments in St. Paul popular with students

CERTs PARTNERS

University of MinnesotaExtension and RegionalSustainableDevelopmentPartnerships

Eureka Recycling

Southwest RegionalDevelopmentCommission

The Minnesota Project

MN Dept. of Commerce,Division of EnergyResources

CERTs FUNDERS

CIP Research andDevelopment Fund, viaMN Dept. of Commerce

American Recovery andReinvestment Act of2009, via U.S.Department of Energy &MN Dept. of Commerce

USDA Rural Energy forAmerica Program

Carolyn, McKnight, Bush& Southwest InitiativeFoundations

University of MinnesotaExtension

Macalester campus energy use from 1988-2011 (weather normalized/sqft)

energy. The program concluded with a discussion and the opportunity for studentsto assemble their own energy efficiency starter kits to take home. The kits includedmany items that students could put to use immediately, including faucet aerators,CFL light bulbs, weather stripping, clay sealing caulk, shower timers, and more.

The Macalester Sustainability Office has also added an additional page to theirwebsite (http://bit.ly/macenergysavingtips) that includes resources for studentrenters who are either preparing to live off campus or have moved off campusalready. The Macalester Sustainability Office has also been working with the Officeof Student Affairs to increase the information available for students living off campus on energy conservation and renter rights. This collaboration produced an“Off-Campus Housing Guide” for students planning on moving off campus thatincludes information about utility bills and energy efficiency steps for renters.

There are always conservation projects happening at Macalester and much of thefocus of Energy Month is keeping the college informed about these projects. In fact,since 2007, 41 energy efficiency projects have taken place on campus and proposalsfor more keep rolling in. Some of these projects were funded from Macalester’sClean Energy Revolving Fund (CERF), which operated from 2007-2009, and nowhas been merged with the campus’ Technology, Equipment and MaintenanceSustainability Fund. These projects included things like insulating student apart-ments, installing low-flow fixtures, purchasing ENERGY STAR appliances, andinstalling efficient light bulbs. The CERF projects alone are estimated to save$46,231, as well as 2,166,705 lbs of CO2e and 260,000 gallons of water annually.

Other recent, major projects include the recommissioning of the Olin-Rice ScienceCenter in 2010, the largest energy user on campus. The lights and vent hoods wereplaced on occupancy sensors to ensure that the building is only heating or coolingspaces when needed. The electric motors in the heating, cooling, and ventilation(HVAC) system have also been changed to more efficient variable-speed drives.These adjustments save the college over $50,000 in energy costs annually.

To learn more about sustainability projects on the Macalester campus, contact the Macalester Sustainability Office at 651-696-8138 or sustainability@macalester.edu.

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Macalester campus emissions sources by category