When it comes to energy conservation, UNC officials are learning that a little effort can go a long way.
In half a year, the UNC Department of Energy Management has helped the University avoid an estimated $1 million in energy costs through a series of easy-to-implement projects.
Through initiatives as simple as turning off lights and regulating building temperatures when buildings are unoccupied, the energy conservation measure program — began in July — has cut down on the amount of electricity, steam and chilled water that the University uses.
Department representatives said the amount of savings is growing daily. And with an average annual energy bill of $83 million, every amount of savings counts.
Chris Martin, director of energy management at UNC and leader of the initiative, said his office’s campaign to aggressively attack energy consumption has been more successful than they imagined.
Senior administrators backed the idea, and the group set about finding ways to conserve energy.
“We got the message loud and clear, and once we got to that point, we had a short planning period to find the most productive things to do,” he said.
A struggling economy drove the group to consider cheap initiatives instead of major changes that have a significant impact.
“The intent was to find the largest opportunity for energy savings for the least amount of money,” Martin said.
The project consists of seven projects split into two phases. The first phase consists of more computerized changes, such as creating occupancy schedules, while the second is more hands-on, requiring more involvement in the community.
The group has addressed specific issues across campus as they moved through the phases, taking input from students, staff and faculty members through its Web site.
“I can identify energy waste in the morning and fix it by the afternoon,” said Jim McAdam, energy engineer with the department. “We’re seeing immediate feedback, and we’re learning a lot.”
While many of the department’s changes have been simple technological changes, solving energy waste isn’t always easy.
One difficult area the department is trying to tackle is waste in the labs. Fume hoods — lab technology that prevent the dispersion of dangerous chemicals — consume a great deal of energy because air has to constantly circulate to flush out toxic fumes.
To reduce the amount of energy used to maintain these hoods, Martin has teamed up with the Renewable Energy Special Projects Committee, a subset of the executive branch of student government, to discuss an education campaign for energy conservation in labs.
“Some of the fuel hoods use as much energy as three houses, so we’re hoping an education campaign can try to educate people in the labs,” said Erin Hiatt, co-chairwoman of the committee.
Hiatt said students who want to be more involved in conservation can report wasteful energy use at save-energy.unc.edu. Each time a report is made, representatives receive an e-mail, and they contact the building manager to discuss ways of saving energy.
“It’s almost like Fix My Room, but instead of it being something that’s broken, it’s wasteful energy use,” Hiatt said.
The last step in the program will try to encourage the campus community to make behavioral changes like turning off the lights.
“UNC is a leader nationally in our energy production. Now we’re focused on how we use the energy,” McAdam said.
Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.
Simple steps cut $1 million on UNC energy bills
Jim McAdam takes a closer look at one of the energy gauges on a panel in Phillips Hall. DTH/Andrew Dye
