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  1. March 3, 2017 Meeting

    Associated Project(s): 
    Transportation iCAP Team
    Indoor Bike Parking

    3/3/17

    Summary: This meeting served to update and refocus the team, as well as to further discuss Lily Wilcox’s suggestion for her bike-cage recommendation.

    In attendance:

    Josh Feldman

    Morgan Johnston

    Brian Farber

    Pete Varney

    Lily Wilcox - Active Transportation Coordinator

    Topics Covered:

    New IWG chair – Ximing Cai

    Ben McCall has stepped down as the iCAP working group chair and will be replaced by Ximing Cai, who will start on March 1st. Morgan Johnston will serve as the interim chair until then. Ximing wants to tie iSEE to other campus sustainability programs better, and wants faculty outside of iSEE more involved.

    IWG wants recommendations

    The iCAP working group is asking for feedback as to how well recommendations are working from our perspective. They hope to have a summary for recommendations by May. For instance, you might note that it is hard to have faculty engagement, or that the SWATeam isn’t getting enough feedback. If you have suggestions you would like IWG to hear, email Morgan Johnston.

    Bike Parking Cage proposal

    Last semester, Lily Wilcox introduced a suggestion to have secure cages for bike storage in all new parking structures. Those who would like to use these structures would pay for a permit. The team has not yet decided to agree completely on the proposal as we are still working out how to address some specific concerns.

    The most important concern is cost. These cages are expected to cost approximately $60,000, and will be in use for the 30-50 year lifespan of the parking structure. Morgan noted that these cages would likely be in high demand, so we could charge upwards of $85-$100 per year for a permit, similar to universities like Ohio State and Minnesota.

    Additionally, we discussed who the primary customers would be. Likely, the primary buyers would be day-riders and some students. Morgan suggested that we talk to campus recreation about the idea as well.

    Finally, we discussed some of the implementation challenges of the proposal. Brian mentioned that having bike riders in a parking garage create a safety hazard as cars may not be aware of or expect bike riders. Furthermore, any malfunction of the card-swipe system would be a huge inconvenience for anyone who needs to retrieve their bike.

    Overall, we have not yet formally agreed to go ahead with the recommendation but will continue to discuss it until we work out these issues.

    Next Meeting

    Our next meeting will be Thursday, March 16 at 1pm. This meeting will take place on Thursday so as to not be right before spring break.

  2. Conservation Budget Recommendation (ECONS003) - Transmittal to the Council

    Associated Project(s): 
    ECBS Recommendations Summary
    Sustainability Council
    Retrocommissioning (RCx)
    Energy Conservation Efforts

    ECONS003 Conservation Budget Recommendation was transmitted to the Office of the Provost on March 6, 2017. The Council discussed the recommendation at this meeting.

    See iWG Assessment of ECONS003 Conservation Budget

    See SWATeam Recommendation of ECONS003 Conservation Budget

  4. EGen005 Rooftop Solar Standards recommendation - Transmittal

    Associated Project(s): 
    Rooftop Solar Potential
    iCAP Working Group (iWG)
    eGen Recommendations Summary

    Following the completion of iWG assessment, the SWATeam recommendation EGen005 Rooftop Solar Standards was transmitted to the Sustainability Council on March 6, 2017.

    See iWG Assessment for SWATeam recommendation EGen005 Rooftop Solar Standard here.

    See SWATeam recommendation EGen005 Rooftop Solar Standards here.

  5. EGen006 Petascale Offsets recommendation - Assessment with all comments

    Associated Project(s): 
    eGen Recommendations Summary
    iCAP Working Group (iWG)
    PPA for National Petascale Computing Facility

    The iCAP Working Group (iWG) met on February 23rd, 2017, to discuss and start the assessment on the SWATeam recommendation EGen006 Petascale Offsets. The iWG's official recommendation was:

    "This has been an open issue since the 2010 iCAP and the 2015 iCAP.  This should be addressed with the current discussions about supercomputing on campus."

    See attached the iWG assessment complete with official comments from all the iWG members.

    See SWATeam recommendation EGen006 Petascale Offsets here.

    Attached Files: 

  6. EGen005 Rooftop Solar Standards recommendation - Assessment with all comments

    Associated Project(s): 
    Rooftop Solar Potential
    iCAP Working Group (iWG)
    eGen Recommendations Summary

    The iCAP Working Group (iWG) met on February 23, 2017, to discuss the SWATeam recommendation EGen005 Rooftop Solar Standards. The official recommendation from the iWG was:

    "Rooftop solar should be included in the Facility Standards, with guidance developed by F&S staff, in order to maximize the effectiveness of solar installations.  This should apply to new construction, major renovations, and roof improvement projects.  Project scopes should include rooftop solar, as applicable, based on the guidance to be developed according to roof orientation, nearby shading, potential solar capacity, and roof construction type (e.g., gypsum would be an inappropriate roof decking for retrofitting with solar PVs). Exceptions should require a variance during the capital design review process."

    See attached the assessment form complete with official comments from all the iWG members.

    See SWATeam recommendation EGen005 Rooftop Solar Standards here.

    Attached Files: 

  7. Work Order created for engineering work

    Associated Project(s): 
    Speech and Hearing Rooftop Solar PVs

    Work Request 253325 converted to Work Order 10519389

     

    Work Order: 10519389

    Building: 0209 - SPEECH AND HEARING SCIENCE

    Room:

    Department Reference:

     

    Customer Description:

    WO for engineering services for solar funding for Speech and hearing sciences

     

    Phases:

    Phase: 001 DESIGN SERVICES

  8. Weekly Update

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center
    Bicycle Education

    All, last week we had 114 visitors. We grossed $997.25. We sold two bikes for $210 and six memberships for $180. The new hires are coming along, with only minor hiccups here and there.

    Last week Lily and I assisted with the University High School Agora Days class that a Bike Project member was leading.  For Four days last week we went over various bike repair basics, focusing on tires/tubes, minor brake adjustments, chains, and a how-to on bike fitting. The kids were genuinely interested and engaged, and no one minded getting a little dirty. The only downside was the one-hour limit on each day’s class.

    Lily and I also met to discuss the implementation of some bike classes for which she so adeptly secured funding.

    This week I will get a job posting up for more student workers, as one new hire is MIA and a few others are graduating. I will continue to work on the departmental bike share bikes for F&S as well as bikes for sale here, as our stock isn’t quite as robust as I would like pre-spring rush.

    Sincerely,

    • Jake Benjamin
      Campus Bike Center Manager

  9. Campus Tree Inventory Recommendation - assessment with comments

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Tree Inventory
    iCAP Working Group (iWG)
    Utilize Carbon Credits
    ALUFS Recommendations Summary

    The iCAP WOrking Group (iWG) met on February 23rd, 2017, to discuss and start the assessment of SWATeam recommendation ALUFS002 Campus Tree Inventory. Their official comment on this recommendation was:

    "The iCAP Working Group supports the use of the Carbon Credit funds for a tree inventory update."

    See attached the iWG assessment complete with official comments from all the iWG members.

    See SWATeam ALUFS002 Recommendation.

    Attached Files: 

  10. ECBS SWATeam meeting minutes

    Associated Project(s): 
    Illini Lights Out
    Green Lab Program
    Energy Conservation Efforts
    Energy Conservation and Building Standards (ECBS) SWATeam
    Earth Week

    On the agenda at the ECBS SWATeam meeting:

    1) Discuss and comment on attached recommendation for institutionalizing Illini Lights Out;

    2) Illini Lights Out final planning for 24th of February;

    3) Participation in Earth Hour activities on campus;

    4) Discussion on what else to accomplish this year.

    Attached Files: 

  12. GRITS update

    Associated Project(s): 
    EPA Green Power Partner

    Greetings from all of us at SEI! We're excited to share that our GRITS Library has surpassed 2,000 projects! We're also happy to announce our new web site, GoGRITS.org, and highlight the new features of GRITS 1.7. We hope many of you can join us for a March 15 GRITS 1.7 Walkthrough webinar.

    THE GRITS LIBRARY HITS 2,000 PROJECTS
    This week, the GRITS Library surpassed 2,000 projects! The Library is full of completed projects that allow users to learn from one another and get inspired to do more. Collectively, these projects have achieved impressive results:

    425fb402-cf72-4ca3-a82d-1b90a2aed5a8.png

    NEW GOGRITS.ORG WEB SITE!  
    We’re excited to announce the launch of GoGRITS.org, a website devoted to SEI’s powerful, time-saving platform for planning, tracking, and sharing data from all of your energy, financial, and carbon-saving projects. The new website profiles the benefits and features of GRITS and provides easy access to free trials, GRITS videos, guides, and more. We hope you'll take a minute to visit GoGRITS.org.
     

  15. PWR SWATeam Minutes

    Associated Project(s): 
    Recycled-Content Paper Policy in CAM
    Illini Gadget Garage
    Recycled-Content Paper Policy in CAM

    At the PWR SWATeam meeting on Feb. 22nd, the team discussed the current campus paper policy. The team will work on reviewing and improving the paper policy to ensure all departments are meeting standards for recycled paper content and identifying reasons for lack of participation. 

    Attached Files: 

  16. Requesting approval as Master Naturalist volunteer site

    Associated Project(s): 
    Red Oak Rain Garden

    The ECIMN Advisory Board meets on the third Monday of the month from 3-5 pm.  Karen Folk and Eliana Brown will present the Red Oak Rain Garden as a requested site for approval as an official volunteer location for the Master Naturalists.  Once Board approval is granted, Maddy Kangas will work to complete the MOU with F&S, similar to the Idea Garden agreement.

    The effort could be set up in three phases: 1. Assessment 2. Renovation 3. Maintenance.

  18. Carbon Credit funding approved for Virtual Storeroom

    Associated Project(s): 
    Virtual Storeroom for Carbon Offsets
    Carbon Credit Purchasing Program (C2P2) with Second Nature
    Utilize Carbon Credits
    Reduce Emissions from Business Travel

    The estimated cost of $2-3/Carbon Credit has been approved by Director of iSEE Evan DeLucia and Interim Executive Director of F&S Helen Coleman for buying 10,000 additional carbon offsets, when purchasing the 103,000 replacement offsets from the carbon credits sold from 2015.  The additional carbon offsets will be used as the initial inventory for a new Virtual Storeroom for carbon offsets being developed by iSEE for on campus users.

    An email of approval is attached below.

    Attached Files: 

  19. Meeting to initiate the work order

    Associated Project(s): 
    Speech and Hearing Rooftop Solar PVs

    F&S staff met to discuss the Speech and Hearing Sciences Building Rooftop Solar PVs project.  Managing Engineer Kristine Chalifoux and Electrical Engineer Brian Finet will take the lead on the design.  The design will use a ballast mounting system, real time energy meters, and an online solar dashboard.

  20. Arbor Day Celebration planned for April 28, 2017

    Associated Project(s): 
    Tree Campus Higher Education

    Five trees will be planted on the South Quad of campus, for the Arbor Day Celebration, on April 28, 2017. The agenda includes a welcome, a reading of the proclamation, an educational speech, the tree planting, and a trivia game.  Attendees will each be invited to add a shovel of soil to the newly planted trees.

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