Energy Efficiency

Making the energy that we use "go further" decreases the need to burn more fossil fuels for power production. This is often the most simple and cost effective way to reduce campus GHG emissions - which is likely why it's the place most campuses begin. Efficiency extends to almost every aspect of campus infrastructure and operations - building materials, lighting, electricity use, appliances, heating, cooling - you name it. There are many ways to "slice" the very broad topic of energy efficiency. Rather than attempt our own explanation and organization on the various aspects, we chose to populate this page with links to the "best of the best" energy efficiency programs, organizations, and resources - which are themselves portals to vast amounts of information and resources And, rather than put a host of links to various aspects of the EPA's ENERGY STAR Program here, we are going to recommend as a starting point the ENERGY STAR for Higher Education home page, from which all those aspects can be explored.

Resources

U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE)
Clean Air-Cool Planet(Feb 17, 2005)

The American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE) publishes an On-line Guide to Energy Efficient Commercial Equipment.
Clean Air-Cool Planet(Feb 17, 2005)

The Alliance to Save Energy has a very useful Green Campus Resources page.
Clean Air-Cool Planet(Feb 17, 2005)

Need information on energy-efficient purchasing? Try these: the ENERGY STAR Procurement guide and the DOE’s Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP)’s Energy Efficient Product Recommendations and Cost Calculators.
Clean Air-Cool Planet(Feb 17, 2005)

Interested in Steam System Energy Efficiency? Go to the Alliance to Save Energy's BestPractices Steam page.
Clean Air-Cool Planet(Feb 17, 2005)

Case Studies and Examples

Tufts University has installed Vending Misers on their soda machines. These devices are easy to install and save about 2300 lbs of CO2 per year per machine (at Tufts that is about $170 per machine per year).
Sarah Creighton (Apr 13, 2005)

The Tufts Climate Initiative (TCI) has worked with the university on dozens of energy-efficiency upgrades. These include: lighting, renovations, new construction, washing machines, computers, and more.
For a complete list, visit TCI's webpage.
Sarah Creighton (Apr 18, 2005)