The College of Wooster has taken two giant steps in becoming a more environmentally friendly and sustainable campus in terms of one very hot political topic: energy. For those of you that thought the building alone of the new Scot Center was a progressive feat for the College, last Monday, Sept. 20, President Grant Cornwell signed a contract with Carbon Vision LCC of Shaker, Ohio, to install a 20,000 square foot solar roof atop the new student recreation and athletic facility. The new solar roof will generate 271,000 kilowatt hours of electricity each year, enough energy to power one residence hall on campus. In addition, another contract was signed with Energy Systems Group of Newburgh, Ind. in order to improve the energy efficiency of 34 campus buildings. By reducing the College’s coal, natural gas and overall electrical consumption, the improvements will reduce Wooster’s carbon footprint by at least 36 percent and will save up to $5.6 million over the span of ten years.
Carbon Vision will actually own the new solar roof. For the first 12 years of operation, however, after that the College will have the title to the roof for the remainder of its 40 year life span. Unlike the roof, which cannot begin energy production until the completion of Scot Center in January of 2012, the building improvements by Energy Systems Group will begin as early as Oct. 1, 2010. The $5 million investment will include upgrades to HVAC and other mechanical systems, building controls, lighting, and windows in the 34 buildings. The company guarantees an annual average savings of $560,000, and if the College does not see the total sum of the guaranteed savings, the company will pay Wooster the difference.
At the press conference, President Cornwell inferred this was an exciting time for the College to significantly reduce its carbon footprint. “Because of Wooster’s size, our mission, and our core values, we have both the opportunity and the responsibility not simply to teach about the world as it is and as it could be, but to model, to experiment, to demonstrate social ideals,” he said. Stressing sustainability he continued, “Nowhere is this more true than with the values and practices of environmental sustainabilityÖfor the last three years we have been getting progressively better organized, more ambitious, and more serious about modeling sustainability practices that the larger society might adopt.”
Carbon Vision CEO Michael Shaut described the project while expressing his excitement to be part of what he called, the”landmark move into solar energy by the College of Wooster,” as the new solar rooftop will be the largest on any college facility in the country. It is truly moving to know the implications of the new roof extend much farther than our own campus, a point stressed by President Cornwell and recognized by Shaut, saying, “This project is emblematic of how new campus facilities should be built in the 21st Century.”
With these two new contracts The College of Wooster becomes a leader in the move to environmentally friendly and sustainable energy practices across the country. With this monumental step the College just took, every one will see Wooster become a greener campus not only now, but for years to come.