Energy to innovate: The University's efforts will only succeed if everyone plays their role

Through its efforts for energy reform, UNC can prove that it is an engine of innovation for the whole of North Carolina.

At Thursday’s energy task force meeting, administrators announced this week’s arrival of the first shipment of wood pellets for UNC’s cogeneration plant.

This is a small step, and both technical and logistical challenges remain ahead: how to source and store biomass fuels and whether such fuels can become cost-effective.

Given the cost of the pellets, coal could produce double the energy. Yet these efforts, reinforced by the 2020 target to eliminate coal-based energy, show that UNC is serious about energy reform and is thinking about the future.

The effects can go beyond this University. Torrefied wood, UNC’s ideal choice as a biofuel, is not yet commercially available in North Carolina.

But North Carolina suppliers suggest that they will have torrefied wood available by the spring, placing UNC on the cusp of statewide biomass fuel innovation.

Such leadership is not unprecedented. The University’s cogeneration plant, which began service in 1991, was constructed using cutting-edge technology. It has been replicated in similarly-sized facilities across the region.

Students also have played an important role, spurring discussion and leading the way in energy efficiency. For example, Morrison Residence Hall currently leads a national EPA energy usage reduction competition.

Likewise, the University’s faculty must take part in such important efforts, as members of the task force pointed out.

Some faculty can meet this challenge through their research, others through curricula and class offerings. Many more may find it difficult to see their relevance to this particular problem.

But with innovation currently at the forefront of dialogue among both senior leadership and students, no one can let themselves fall behind or lose sight of the University’s commitment to the state.