Colgate, five colleges to explore cost-saving steps: Comments

Comment on "Colgate, five colleges to explore cost-saving steps"

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 15:41:30 -0500

Hi Brian-
I just wanted to comment that we (Colgate) meet approximately 70 percent of our heating needs through our wood-fired boiler. The wood chips come from sustainable harvesting practices within our immediate region. This system has been in place since the early 1980's and has been saving the university approximately $1 million annually in energy costs (not to mention the tremendous reduction in our carbon footprint).

With that being said, we still burn about 400,000 gallons of fuel oil #6 to meet the rest of our heating needs (through our central plant). This continues to be an expensive way to heat our buildings and water and contributes over 5,000 tons of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere on an annual basis. We are actively looking for ways to mitigate this, including the recent planting of an 8-acre willow pilot plot only a mile from main campus to start growing some of our own energy.

There are many ways sustainability can save the university money. Energy conservation and efficiency is one of them. Others are waste minimization and running our diesel fleet on cheaper and more environmentally friendly biofuel.

For example, right now we spend about $60,000 annually on landfill tipping fees. Working with other area institutions we could oversee the development of a composting facility that could cut our waste (and cost) in half. Moreover, instead of contributing methane from landfill waste we could produce high-quality compost by separating our organic waste.

Finally, we are exploring ways to take the 50 gallons (or so) of spent vegetable oil produced weekly in dining services and having that processed and returned campus to run our diesel vehicles. The other day I met a Colgate alumnus who would be willing to pay for our veggie oil. They could process it and sell it back to Colgate for less than what we are currently paying for diesel. It could also be used in our Broad Street homes by replacing fuel oil #2. This could save us tens of thousands of dollars over the long-term and significantly reduce our carbon footprint.

- John Pumilio

Comment on "Colgate, five colleges to explore cost-saving steps"

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:32:46 -0500

This is a good thing, any measure which ultimately reduces costs, that can eventually be passed along to our students is a worthwhile opportunity to explore. Best of luck, thanks.

- Rich Landoli

Comment on "Colgate, five colleges to explore cost-saving steps"

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:15:19 -0500

This collaborative approach is ideally suited to "Promoting sustainable institutional environments, including recycling operations and alternative energy supplies." By uniting six schools, economies of scale can be readily achieved. Renewable energy is the perfect area to pick as an initial focus. There are many proven renewable energy systems on the market today which could be procured, contracted, installed and maintained on a six-school scale.

Imagine the savings! For example, converting heating plants to run on renewable biomass (which could be easily obtained from very local sources) makes all the economic sense in the world. Please refer to International Wood Fuels and Middlebury College as leading pioneers in this field. I can expand on this discussion if that would be helpful. Sincerely,
Brian Carroll
Colgate 1976

- Brian Carroll

Comment on "Colgate, five colleges to explore cost-saving steps"

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:06:17 -0500

Perhaps the EEG might consider taping into the resources that exist through the Alumni. In addition to financial contributions, there is a wealth of knowledge and ability that can be tapped to enhance the educational experience and prepare students for the rest of their lives. Consider creating an adjunct professor core like so many other institutions have. This can provide great teaching at VERY low cost and help keep class size, expertise, etc. to the standards Colgate has and wants.

- Arthur Rashap