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  2. Small Solar at Energy Farm

    Associated Project(s): 
    Carbon-Neutral Energy for Campus

     

     

     

    Energy Tax Credit Form

    Webtools Form 447240223 submitted by:
    Tim Mies 
    College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences (KL), Department of Crop Sciences (802), Staff
    11/09/2023 11:52 A.M.

    Thank you for submitting the Energy Tax Credit Form. The applicable University Liaison will contact you after it has been reviewed.

    1. Location:
    UIUC

    2. Applicant College/Department:
    Crop Sciences

    3. Project number and/or building (if applicable):
    near Energy Farm

    4. Anticipated beginning of construction date:
    2/1/2024

    5. Anticipated placed in service date:
    6/1/2024

    6. Total project budget (basis or cost):
    91,000

    7. Estimated construction costs (only include total energy project cost, including contingency):
    81,600

    8. Will the property be owned by the university as a depreciable asset?
    Yes

    9. Will the property be financed with tax-exempt bonds?
    No

    10. If yes, what percentage of the property is financed with tax-exempt bonds?

    11. Is the energy property funded by a restricted grant or restricted forgivable loan**?
    No

    12. If yes, what amount is funded by a restricted grant or restricted forgivable loan?

    13. Provide a brief description of the project and the energy component that may qualify for the tax credit:
    Project will connect existing 15kw solar panels to campus electrical grid.

    14. Briefly describe the proposed intended use of the tax credit funds:
    Funds will be used to support campus ICAP efforts

    15. What tax credit is applicable for the project?
    Investment tax credit IRC Section 48: qualified energy property or technology (Appendix A)

    16. Is this energy property funded by a grant made under Section 1603 of the American Recovery and Reinvestment of 2009 (The 1603 Program: Payments for Specified Energy Property in lieu of Tax Credits)?
    No

    17. Which of the following options describes the property?
    equipment which uses solar energy to generate electricity, to heat or cool (or provide hot water for use in) a structure, or to provide solar process heat, except property used to generate energy for the purposes of heating a swimming pool, or

    18. Is there qualified interconnection property associated with the project?
    No

    19. If yes, what is the basis (cost) of any qualified interconnection property associated with the energy project?

    20. Is the property part of a clean hydrogen production facility?
    No

    21. Does the project meet one (1) of the following requirements (five (5) times base credit amount for a total of 30%)?
    Yes

    22. If yes, which requirement is met?
    Item #1

    23. Does the project meet the domestic content bonus credit**?
    No

    24. Is the project located in an energy community**?
    No

    25. Do you want to proceed?
    Yes

    53. Submission and Liaisons
    Timothy Mies, Director Energy Farm Operations, 11/09/2023

     

     

     

     

     

     

    --------------------------

    Hi Angie,

     

    I’ve reviewed this form (actually, Tim filled it out while I was with him), and I agree this small solar installation at UIUC should qualify for the IRA Tax Credit.  I understand that the next step is for you to review it, and then forward it to the Treasury Office for their review and processing.

     

    Please let me and Tim know if you have any questions.

     

    Thanks,

    Morgan

    -----------------------------

     

    Morgan,

     

    Is this project actually a solar installation or just the interconnection?

     

    From below:

    “Project will connect existing 15kw solar panels to campus electrical grid.”

     

    If this is not the purchase/construction of solar panels for original use, it is not property as described under Section 48:

    equipment which uses solar energy to generate electricity, to heat or cool (or provide hot water for use in) a structure, or to provide solar process heat, except property used to generate energy for the purposes of heating a swimming pool,

     

    I’m happy to set up a time to discuss if that helps.

     

    Kimberly A. Maxwell, CPA

    ----------------------------

    Hi Tim and Rob,

     

    I’d like your perspective on this question about the small solar at the Energy Farm.  If you would like to discuss it, please let me know who to include in a call with the tax office.

     

    Thank you,

    Morgan

    ------------------------------

    Hi Morgan,

     

    Happy to discuss this further to determine if this project can meet the requirements for the credit.  Do we want to discuss internally first?

     

    Best,
    Tim

  3. iSEE Campus Sustainability Team Meeting notes

    Associated Project(s): 
    Institute for Sustainability, Energy, and Environment (iSEE)

    Notes from our Campus Sustainability team meeting are attached.

    Actions:

    Miriam reaching back out to Ball State for more info on their program

    Jen reaching out to DIA for a mtg-some direct requests for signage, staff support for recycling collection, getting volunteers

    Morgan asked F&S to do an analysis of what could be accomplished with current $$ from carbon credit sales

    Ask Daphne to look into options for SFC bins

    Morgan would like for Madhu to speak to Paul Ellinger for his perspective on the carbon credit sales

    Jen to reach out to Lowa and Alma about water quality testing

    Miriam working to set up time with SSLC in Jan for a touch base meeting

    -Elizabeth

    Attached Files: 

  5. New Greener Campus Certifications - Fall 2023

    Associated Project(s): 
    Certified Greener Campus Programs
    Certified Green Event Program
    Certified Green Chapter Program

    14 campus events have been recognized by iSEE's Certified Green Events program this fall, and two fraternities were recertified Gold under the Certified Green Chapter program — Alpha Kappa Psi Professional Business Fraternity and the Triangle Alpha Chapter. The events included: August — New Student Convocation, Gov. J.B. Pritzker Visit, Illinois Promise Lunch, Exchange & International Student Welcome Event, Department of Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg Visit, Dennis H. May Diversity Conference on Mental Health and Higher Education, ABA TechShow; September — CCFD Kick-off, Illinois News Broadcasters Association Reception, Men's Football Games (Suite and Pregame Events), 2023 Great Lakes Sea Grant Network Meeting; October — Illini Lights Out; November — weSTEM Conference, P&T Bookplate Reception.  

  6. Revolving Loan Fund Research

    Associated Project(s): 
    Revolving Loan Fund (RLF)

    Hi Morgan,

     

    I created a spreadsheet of all of the participants of the Billion Dollar Green Challenge. This spreadsheet includes the population size and loan amount. I thought it would be easier to sort through the information with this. I will try to find data about current energy savings to add to this sheet. But almost all of the institutions have very little information about what they have done with the loan amount. And if they do have information, it is minimum 3-5 years old.

     

    I attached that document and my current word document. Still need to add a few more universities, but I wanted to see the numbers clearly before I picked a random one to look into.

     

    According to this data we have the 9th largest loan fund. Ill focus on the rest of the universities above us in the list.

     

    Thanks,

     

    Quinn M. Connolly

    Attached Files: 

  8. EPA funding opportunity?

    Associated Project(s): 
    Addressing Community Health Disparities from Hazardous Waste
    Install Appropriate Waste Collection Infrastructure

    Hi Susan,

     

    I hope this message finds you well after the holiday weekend. I wanted to reach out regarding the recent EPA notice of funding opportunity for the Inflation Reduction Act Community Change Grant Program, which you may have already heard about. I attached the full notice of funding opportunity document to this email. The due date for applications is November 21, 2024. Community-based non-profits can partner with institutions of higher education on a collaborative project.

     

    Track 1 applications, community-driven investments for change, covers a broad area of community conditions that could be assessed. One of the specific objectives covered is “reduce local pollution to improve public health.” I understand that building a HHW facility for the county would address pollutants that may otherwise end up improperly disposed of.

     

    I just wanted to reach out and call your attention to this opportunity in case you hadn’t already heard about it. Do you think this could be useful for funding the HHW facility? If so, I’d certainly be interested in being involved!

     

    Thank you,

    Daphne

    ------------------------

    Hi Daphne, 

     

    This is definitely the best email I've received recently!!!  OMG. CCES is potentially so very interested. 

    I'll be reviewing this and will touch base with you ASAP.  

     

    Thanks so much for bringing this to my attention. 

     

    Susan Monte

    -----------------------

    Hi Jen, Morgan, & Pete,

     

    Exciting news – big EPA notice of funding opportunity just released from the IRA for $2B, applications due a year from now. Community-based non-profits can partner with institutions of higher education on an environment justice project. The Champaign County Environmental Stewards have been wanting to tackle our lack of household hazardous waste facility here in Champaign County for some time. This would be a huge win for campus waste, too. Depending on what we scour in the notice of funding opportunity document (i.e. assuming we are eligible), this would be something I’d like to explore pursuing with CCES.

     

    Thank you,

    Daphne

    -------------------------

     

    Hi Daphne,

     

    I skimmed the RFP (here) and noticed a strong emphasis on environmental justice. The program objective is “redressing environmental and climate injustices for communities facing legacy pollution, climate change, and persistent disinvestment.”

     

    I think iSEE /the Resilience team can help with a proposal. It would be a good idea for us to discuss how best to do this.

     

    One immediate thought I had was whether we could combine a hazardous waste facility with a facility for waste-to-energy conversion and build in job/economic opportunities in the community much like the Green Era Campus in Chicago. It doesn’t need to be an anaerobic digestor (although we certainly have enough organic waste generated regionally to support one).

                                                                 

    Let me know what you think.

     

    Jen

    ---------------------------

     

    Hi Jen,


    Good catch on the environmental justice piece. I like your line of thinking on how we can incorporate additional features into a HHW facility. I think it would be great to chat about this with the CCES and determine a shared direction. I’m waiting to hear back from Susan and would be happy to schedule this.

     

    Thank you,

    Daphne

  11. Land & Water iCAP Team December 2023 Meeting

    Associated Project(s): 
    Meadow at Orchard Downs
    Land and Water iCAP Team
    Crop Protection and Pest Management (CPPM)

    The Land & Water iCAP team met on Teams from 1-2 PM on Friday, December 1st. The team discussed the meadow at Orchard Downs, revising the iCAP Land & Water objectives, and the development of an IPM plan for non-F&S areas. Meeting minutes are attached.

    Attached Files: 

  13. CCB's year-end gathering this Saturday afternoon.

    Associated Project(s): 
    Reduce Driving on Campus
    Increase Bicycle Use

    You might be a long-time friend of CCB, or someone we just met at the Farmer's Market this summer.  Either way, come hang out for a while with us at the 25 O'Clock Brewing Company.  We will bring the snacks, you bring your stories from 2023 and ideas for 2024.

     

    And you are welcome to bring a cyclist friend with you.

     

    See you Saturday!

     

    Jeff

    Attached Files: 

  15. Weekly Update: Thanksgiving break, Kids bike donation

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, Hope everyone had a good holiday break! Mine extended into Monday, so this is a day late.

    We got a few more kids bike donations come in the Friday before we closed for the break, so we are full steam ahead in soliciting donations and fixing them up. With the nippy weather we should have plenty of time to work on the donations we have so far and tackle some cleaning/organizing that always gets pushed to the slower and colder months. We’ll also continue to make progress on the barn bikes.

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 24

    Sales: $476.50
    Bikes (refurb): 1 for $180
    Memberships: 4 for $120
    Tires/tubes: 6 for $61

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Coordinator -- Campus Bike Center

  17. Action: slides for iSEE advisory committee &Subcouncil

    Associated Project(s): 
    Institute for Sustainability, Energy, and Environment (iSEE)

    Hi All,

     

    The iSEE advisory committee and Sustainability Subcouncil will meet on November 27. I would like to get a first draft of the slides done by Friday, November 17 so Madhu has time to review it before the Thanksgiving holiday.

     

    The Advisory slides on Box: https://uofi.box.com/s/m380tqilie5s4503svndmoot1hbxnftx

     

    I have put update assignments in the notes section of the slides, but will also list them here:

    Heidi-slides 6,7 (if there is something exciting), 9,11 (Proposal metrics, new proposals submitted, Sust Trans update) Should we add Kyushu in here?

    Luis-slides 13, 14 (Critical Conv and Sloan Workshop)

    Eric-slides 15-20 (ELP and Gen Ed. Add a slide about the ESG certificate)

    Jen/Miriam-slides 22-30 (Waste reduction efforts/DIA engagement and Carbon Credit accounting)

     

    Subcouncil slides: https://uofi.box.com/s/241ttyx8bfceor6hzvoqp0c577lykpzx

    Jen and Miriam—pull the slides about waste reduction and carbon credits over to this talk also. Make a slide on the Green research (there is a placeholder)

    Eric-pull the Gen Ed slides over to this talk and replace the previous version.

     

    Thanks,

    Elizabeth

    -------------------------------

    Hi Elizabeth,

     

    I have compiled all the draft subcouncil slides into this version: https://uofi.app.box.com/file/1361429522139

     

    Please let me know if you have any questions or changes.

     

    Best,

    Miriam

    --------------------------------

     

    Hi all,

     

    Please use the version:

     

    Sustainability SubCouncil Nov 2023_11.17.2023_new.pptx

     

    https://uofi.box.com/s/cbg4t8nr73ib38sr23i7n8k32uo82lwf

     

    Thanks,

    Jen

    ------------------------------

     

    Hi All

    Thanks for putting these slides together in a timely manner. I have a few comments and suggestions below

     

    Miriam/Tony

    A few formatting edits are needed to improve the look and readability of the slides

    1. Remove the top header which says education or campus sustainability on each slide since it is redundant to have it on each slide
    2. Instead make the content oriented header which is on the next line the top header and in larger font.
    3. Please change font to be at least 20 or more everywhere
    4. Add a section break for each change in topic – is this current section header following our latest template? If not would be good to have that.
    5. Miriam - Send me the numbers underlying the graphs for carbon credits that you have created
    6. Miriam – any idea on how our decision to sell or not would affect our AASHE gold star rating?

     

    All- take a look at the two slides I have added at the end and see if you agree.

    We have three choices for our recommendation on carbon credits –

    stop sales completely

    or follow the Ball state example and say that we will stop sales after we reach carbon neutrality, sell our credits in the meantime and not claim any environmental benefit from these reductions in the meantime,

    or only sell to entities that are willing to retire these credits and not claim it to achieve their own carbon reduction goals.

     

    Thoughts? We can keep it open for now and solicit ideas from the council.

     

    If I could have these back by Wednesday then I can go over again and have a final version ready for Elizabeth to send to the Council by Saturday. 

     

    Have a great Thanksgiving!

    Madhu

    ------------------------

     

    Hi Madhu,

     

    Regarding the last slide: Second Nature confirmed at the end of October that we have 10,264 remaining unsold carbon credits. These credits are vintage year 2018, and we haven’t verified any credits beyond 2018. I’m not sure if we can estimate total potential credits if we achieve carbon neutrality as I’ve been told the calculation used is quite complicated, but I’ve reached out to Second Nature to ask if there is any guidance to come up with a rough estimate. Another consideration is how we plan to reach carbon neutrality, and the feasibility of achieving carbon neutrality through emissions reductions alone. It looks like most schools plan to achieve carbon neutrality by buying some offsets.

     

    Please see my responses to your other questions below in blue:

     

     

    1. Miriam - Send me the numbers underlying the graphs for carbon credits that you have created

    The graphs were generated on SIMAP. The attached spreadsheet includes the underlying data. I’ve also included a screen grab below that lays out the numbers clearly.

    1. Miriam – any idea on how our decision to sell or not would affect our AASHE gold star rating?

    Institutions can earn up to 8 possible points for Greenhouse Gas Emissions in the AASHE scoring system. UIUC received 3.15 out of 8 possible points in this category. Carbon credits sold or transferred are accounted for in our total score, so selling carbon credits could reduce the points we earn here. I looked at the report for Ball State, and found they achieved a Gold rating in 2023. Their score for Greenhouse Gas Emissions is also higher than ours at 4.5/8.0. This suggests there are ways to maintain a high score in this area while selling carbon credits.
    Our most recent AASHE score is 73.25, and the range for Gold is 65-85, so I do not expect that selling carbon credits would have a strong enough impact on our score to alter our overall Gold rating.

    Thanks and please let me know if you have any other questions!

     

    Best,

    Miriam

    -------------------------------

    Hi Morgan,

     

    The data from the carbon emissions charts in the subcouncil slides is attached here.

     

    -Miriam

    Attached Files: 

  19. Invitation to Award Ceremony 2023

    Associated Project(s): 
    ReImagine Our Future

    Dear Friend of the Reimagine our Future sustainability competition,

     

    Thank you for your fantastic support for the 2023 Reimagine our Future competition as a participant, specialist advisor, judge, sponsor, media representative, or interested person. This year we had a record number of 243 participants and 44 submissions from 10 higher education institutions.

    The roughly 100 initial judges have reviewed the submissions, provided comments which will be sent to the teams, and selected 12 finalists. (The list of finalists is available below this message.) These teams or individuals will briefly present their projects during an award ceremony on Saturday Dec. 2, 2023, 11:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. (US Central Time). The winners of nine awards totaling US$7,000 will be announced after the presentations.  

    Professor Kelvin Droegemeier will be the guest speaker at this event. UIUC’s Student Sustainability Committee will conduct the ceremonies.

    You are cordially invited to join us in-person if you are in the vicinity of the UIUC. The ceremony will take place in Room 4031 of UIUC’s Campus Instructional Facility. We will serve refreshments from 10:45 a.m. and a light lunch after the ceremony.

    If you cannot join us in-person, you are invited to join the award ceremony via Zoom:

    Please be so kind to respond to this invitation by completing the following poll before Thursday Nov. 30 at 10 a.m. (US Central Time).

    Thank you again for your support. We look forward to thanking you on Dec. 2 and are confident that you will be impressed by the students’ outstanding projects.

     

    Yours sincerely,

    Leon Liebenberg (Teaching Professor, Department of Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering, UIUC) 

    Warren Lavey (Adjunct Professor, College of Law, School of Earth, Society & Environment, and College of Medicine, UIUC) 

    Robert McKim (Emeritus Professor, Department of Religion, UIUC) 
    Codie Sterner (Coordinator, Student Sustainability Committee, UIUC) 

     

    (Reimagine Our Future co-founders and coordinating committee)

     

    FINALISTS IN THE 2023 REIMAGINE OUR FUTURE COMPETITION

    (In alphabetical order of the team leaders’ last names)

    Arshia Ajmera, Keerthana Nallamotu (University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign) – Accessible screening for preeclampsia

    Muskaan Alimchandani (University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign) – Vrddhi Sthan – A brighter future for Dharavi

    Brandon Baron, Whitney Fowler, Shito Ito, Ada Moy, Gwynne McGrady (University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign) – Parking lot permaculture

    Karmyn Flesch, Nadia Wilson, Emily Rhodes, Gabriella Sanchez (University of Illinois, Springfield) – Zero food waste

    Amy Jurkowski, Matthew Nowlan, Liesl Schrag, Aiden Sup (University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign) – Renewable energy-supported housing and opportunities for immigrants

    Iryna Maistrenko (International Humanitarian University, Ukraine) – Organization of organic farming during the war in Ukraine

    Margot O'Malley, Tom George, Jasper Nord (University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign) – Grounds for nutrition

    Manan Sanghavi (University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign) – Optimizing resource efficiency by digitizing receipt processes

    Jamie Scimeca, Xiang Fei Heah (University of Birmingham) – Light-water small modular reactor

    Advay Sudarshan, Patrick Harsono, Jesse Wei, Hugo Ji (University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign) – Polyester upcycling and fiber composite furniture

    Hlib Vakumenko (Vienna University of Economics and Business) – Transform food waste into improved dietary nutrition

    Charles Wheeler, Lucas Baronello, Saharra Murphy, Caila Riggs, Michelle Check (University of Illinois, Springfield) – Farm to School: a shared investment for a healthier future

  20. Champaign Rainwater Report

    Associated Project(s): 
    Rainwater Management

     

    Hi Linda,

     

    I just talked to Morgan White, copied. Can you send her the final version of the Rainwater Report you did for Champaign? They are closing the loop on that.

     

    Thank you!

     

    Lisa

    -----------------------

    Hi Lisa,

     

    Of course! If anything else is needed to close the loop, happy to help. 

     

    Best,

     

    Linda

    Attached Files: 

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