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  1. FY17 ECIP award winners announced

    Associated Project(s): 
    Energy Conservation Incentive Program (ECIP)
    Occupant Action Category

    % Improvement

    Incentive Award
    1. Foellinger Auditorium 41.0% $61,994
    2. Natural Resources Building 21.0% $38,543
    3. 1207 W. Oregon 19.4% $15,677
    4. Agricultural Engineering Sciences
        Building    		 13.6% $12,986

    Energy Advancement Category

    % Improvement

    Incentive Award
    1. Early Child Development
        Laboratory    		 25.2% $10,000*
    2. Administrative Information Technology
        Services Building    		 24.1% $10,000*
    3. Astronomy Building 23.4% $10,000*
    4. ACES Library, Information &
        Alumni Center    		 23.2% $10,000*

     

  2. Program finishes strong!

    Associated Project(s): 
    Solar Urbana-Champaign

    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

    October, 31, 2017

    Contact: peterm@midwestrenew.org

     

    Solar Urbana-Champaign Bulk Solar Purchase Program Finishes Strong

    Claire Johnson and Jill Houser have just finished installing solar panels on Andy Robinson’s roof as part of the Solar Urbana-Champaign 2.0 program. They are  members of New Prairie Construction’s solar installation team, and part of a mostly female crew. They and other teams from New Prairie Construction will be installing 446.95 kilowatts of solar on 58 properties across Champaign County as a result of the program, which helped people save on solar through volume purchasing. Robinson not only went solar through the program, he also helped to lead it.

    “I’ve thought solar was a cool way to reduce our carbon footprint ever since seeing the 2007 UI solar decathlon house in DC, but it also needed to make financial sense for our family,” said Robinson, who was hired by the Midwest Renewable Energy Association (MREA) to facilitate the education sessions, called “Solar Power Hours,” for the program. “Now we will offset nearly all of our electric use and it was a good financial investment.  New Prairie laid out the panels on the front and back roof in a way that looks like it is a part of the design of our 1920 house. We were especially happy to meet the diverse install crew of local women and men, and a highly qualified refugee.”

    “In the 1980’s, Jill and I got our start in construction through the woman-owned company Working Women Construction,” said Julie Birdwell, owner of New Prairie Construction. “When we started New Prairie Construction, we made a commitment to providing opportunities for women. We never regretted it. Our New Prairie women contribute more than just diversity. They help contribute to a positive work culture and maintain a high level of attention to detail and craftsmanship.”

    “When we think about the benefits of solar energy, we often picture environmental benefits, of which there are of course many,” said Peter Murphy, Solar Program Manager at Midwest Renewable Energy Association (MREA). “But what often gets overlooked is the growing number of solar jobs, which are local and by nature cannot be outsourced.”

    “One out of every 50 new jobs added in the United States in 2016 was created by the solar industry, representing 2% percent of all new jobs,” according to The Solar Foundation, a nonprofit organization that conducts a national solar jobs census.

    “We recently had an opportunity to hire an Afghan national who worked in construction for the US military in Afghanistan,” said Birdwell. “Hiring such a refugee is a way of acknowledging the risks and sacrifices he and his family have made to support our country. In addition, he and our other employees from different cultures and countries provide positive contributions to our work culture, and we feel, our overall product.”

    “In the first day of solar production, our kids said that we were vacuuming with sunshine,” said Robinson. “And they are right.”

    “The electricity produced by the 446 kW of solar the program has contracted will offset around 639,035 lbs of CO2 being released into atmosphere in the first year alone,” said Scott Tess, Environmental Sustainability Manager at the City of Urbana. “That amount of solar energy will also save almost 10 million gallons of water from use in thermoelectric power plants that run on coal or natural gas.”

    The program was administered by the MREA at no cost to the city or the county. MREA has successfully implemented similar programs in other jurisdictions in Illinois, Iowa, and Wisconsin as seen in Milwaukee, Cedar Rapids, Bloomington-Normal, and elsewhere. Solarize programs have taken place all over the country, from California to Maine.

    "The solar branch of New Prairie Construction Co. is a natural extension of our commitment to providing high quality, environmentally responsible solutions for homes and businesses," says Julie Birdwell, co-owner of New Prairie. "Solar Urbana-Champaign 2.0 provides an excellent opportunity for our community to use the power of bulk purchasing to get premium quality installations for a great price.  We are excited to work with our neighbors to help increase sustainability and energy independence in Champaign County."

    MREA issued a request for proposals to solar installers in January. A local advisory committee reviewed proposals based on professional certification, experience, and cost. They selected New Prairie Construction Co., based in Urbana. They were chosen as the solar installer for the second Solar Group Buy because of their high-quality solar installations, building science expertise, and emphasis on customer service.

    ###

    The MREA was incorporated as a 501(c)3 nonprofit shortly after the first Energy Fair in 1990. MREA’s mission is to promote renewable energy, energy efficiency, and sustainable living through education and demonstration. To learn more, call 715-592-6595 or visit www.TheEnergyFair.org or www.midwestrenew.org.

  3. UIUC's answer to MSU regarding EV charging at UIUC

    Associated Project(s): 
    Install Public Use Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Stations

    MSU asked the following questions of the Big Ten schools.  Here are the UIUC answers, provided by Professor Scott Willenbrock:

     

    Ann,

    Here is information on UIUC.  Most of this infrastructure was put in 3 years ago.  We are now starting to think about where to go from here, so we would appreciate your sharing what you learn from other Big Ten partners.

    Scott

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

    BIG10 Sustainability Friends,

    I am looking for case study information on campus EV charging stations. MSU has several but are looking to expand the service. I have a few questions.

    • How many stations/spaces do have installed on campus? Level 2: 8 spaces.  Level 1: 14
    • How do you charge for use? Level 2: 6 spaces have Chargepoint chargers.  Price is $2/hr for the first 4 hours, $8/hr thereafter.  2 of the spaces are free to visitors of the Institute for Sustainability, Energy, and Environment.  Level 1: Six are free to permit holders, eight are pay spaces ($0.75/hr).
    • How is the cost structured? See above.
    • How do incentivize use? Or regulate use so that only EVs can access? We do not incentive use per se.  The six Level 1 chargers that are free to permit holders are all used daily.   In all spots (Level 1 and Level 2) there is signage that says “EV charging only”, and these are generally respected.
    • Are you measuring how much each station gets used? Level 2 Chargepoint: Yes (see below).  As mentioned above, the six Level 1 that are free to permit holders are used daily.  All other chargers are seldom used.
    • Do you have business model to understand payback on the infrastructure/equipment costs?  No. The installation of the Level 2 chargers was expensive, several tens of thousands of dollars.  We are getting about $100/month of income from them.  Clearly this does not make economic sense.  The Level 1 chargers are free, but the cost of the electricity we are providing is so small as to be negligible.  This may change if we expand access to Level 1 charging.

     

    The last question is the most important.

     

    Thank you,

    Ann

     

    Ann Erhardt, MM, ISSP-SA

    Director of Sustainability

    Strategic Initiatives

    Infrastructure Planning and Facilities

    Michigan State University

  6. iWG meeting minutes October 27, 2017

    Associated Project(s): 
    iCAP Working Group (iWG)
    Solar Farm 2.0
    Green Lab Program
    Energy Conservation Incentive Program (ECIP)
    Topical iCAP Teams
    Water and Stormwater SWATeam
    Zero Waste iCAP Team
    Transportation iCAP Team
    Energy Conservation and Building Standards (ECBS) SWATeam
    Energy Generation, Purchasing, & Distribution (eGen) SWATeam
    Agriculture, Land Use, Food, and Sequestration (ALUFS) SWATeam

    see file

    Attached Files: 

  8. Call for Eco-Olympics Leaders

    Associated Project(s): 
    Eco-Olympics

    Apply to fill one of the EcoOlympics officer roles Now!

    Do team building, leadership, networking with campus stakeholders, and preparing for the real world sound like a great way to build your resume. Gain experience and build these business aspects of your portfolio while having fun with your colleagues and making a difference in the world!

                    Leadership, team building, communication and business organizational experience with environmentally friendly programs put you at the top of the pack when applying to corporate/academic internships, non-profit organizations, outreach organizations and graduate programs. Participating as an officer is gratifying and fulfills these qualifications, while providing plenty of documented recognition in environmental stewardship and energy conservation.

    See file for example of leadership certificate and acknowledgement from Chancellor Jones.

    We are currently building this year’s organization team, so join us to develop your portfolio and work together organizing and helping others reach their goals and make a difference in the world, by sending a 75-150 word essay (essentially 2-3 paragraphs) about why being an officer on the EcoOlympics organization team is important to you. Send to EcoOlympics@gmail.com and include the position (see list below) you are applying  for in the subject title.

    For a closer look:

    1) At the competition, visit the iCap description and our website

    2) For personal benefits visit housings article highlighting Jessica Mondello’s experience and accomplishments

    3) As for fun, games and camraderie check out and join our facebook page 

    Now accepting resume’s for the following positions:

    Team Members:

    ·         President- leads the organization team, manages all aspects of the competition

    ·         Treasurer- manages funding of the competition, sponsors, prizes, marketing materials and promotions

    ·         Marketing/Publicity Chair- manages the recruiting of participants, marketing events and advertising, coordinates efforts with the     Building Captain Manager

    ·         Building Captain Chair- communicates and motivates the building captains for each team and collaborates with the Publicity Chair

    ·         Technical Chair- manages and publishes the technical data, networks with utilities services and building managers to gain access to metering information

    See file for time commitment per role.

    Resume building, networking and gratifying experience – Preparation for real world
    Emphasize the shortness of the commitment for the value gained
    There will be guidance, resources, and structure for accomplishing these leadership roles

     

    Thank you

    Paul Foote

    Think Globally. Act Locally

     

    University of Illinois Urbana Champaign

    Facilities and Services, Utilities and Energy Services

    Energy Conservation and Retro-commissioning

    Office: 217-244-1048

     

    Attached Files: 

  9. Posters from all the SWATeams at the Campus Sustainability Celebration

    Associated Project(s): 
    Topical iCAP Teams
    Energy Generation, Purchasing, & Distribution (eGen) SWATeam
    Agriculture, Land Use, Food, and Sequestration (ALUFS) SWATeam
    Transportation iCAP Team
    Energy Conservation and Building Standards (ECBS) SWATeam
    Zero Waste iCAP Team
    Water and Stormwater SWATeam
    iCAP Working Group (iWG)
    2015 Illinois Climate Action Plan (2015 iCAP) [ARCHIVED]

    The attached pdf shows the FY16 status update posters for iCAP objectives, shared by each SWATeam at the Campus Sustainability Celebration.”

    Attached Files: 

  10. Weekly Update

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, with warm temps last week the shop remained busy. Friday there was even a line for stand time. Wednesday morning was the bike census. It was wonderful weather for it and I think it went well! One CBC student staffer and a CBC volunteer extraordinaire volunteered for the event, which I was happy to see. Thanks, Leah and Rick!

    On Friday, a Bike Project Volunteer came and picked up all the scrap we’d accumulated in the last few weeks, which will help immensely in organizing and storage.

    Programming alerts: This week is the Campus Sustainability Celebration on Wednesday so the shop will be closed for that; and next Monday (30th) I will be out of town. I will post on the website and Facebook for both closings. (And of course, signage on the door.)

    On to the numbers:

    Visitors: 99
    Sales: $1,066.45
    Bikes (refurb): 1 for $159
    Bikes (B-a-B): 2 for $210
    Memberships: 10 for $300
    Tires/tubes: 24 for $124

    Sincerely,

    • Jake Benjamin
      Campus Bike Center Manager

  11. SSC Voting Meeting - 10.21.17

    Associated Project(s): 
    Student Sustainability Committee (SSC)

    On October 21, 2017, the Student Sustainability Committee held a voting meeting for Fall 2017 projects. First, the committee approved the scope change for the Illini Bike Share. Next, the committee examined the 34 submitted proposals to select which proposals would get funded, declined, or moved to Step 2. SSC funded seven proposals at this meeting.

    Attached Files: 

  14. Weekly Update

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center
    Collection and Donation of Abandoned Bicycles

    All, last Monday we had the bike warehouse move out event on Monday. As I mentioned last week, we moved out about 317 bikes. Some of the bikes we kept and moved back to the CBC have already been claimed as build-a-bikes, which is great. The rest will be cleared out at a TBD date.

    Belatedly announcing this but: Lily and I and Amy tabled at an event at the Union on October 5th.  It was a University employee expo of sorts. The very first person I spoke with was misinformed about safe passing distance for cars, something I was able to correct. It was a welcomed change and challenge to inform a lot of vehicular road users about how to interact with bicyclists and pedestrians, considering all the gripes I heard from employees about walkers and bikers—as most employees drive to work from out of town (or at least the ones I spoke with do). I was also pleased to see a lot of familiar faces of people that have visited the Campus Bike Center.

    This week is the bike census, happening on Wednesday. Hopefully we’ll get good weather and a good snapshot of the state of bicycle parking on campus.

    The numbers:

    Sales: $635.50

    Memberships: 13 for $390
    Bikes (Refurb): 0 for $0
    Bikes (B-a-b): 0 for $0
    Tires/tubes: 10 for $54

    Sincerely,

    • Jake Benjamin
      Campus Bike Center Manager

  18. Thanks UIUC for all the wonderful bicycles

    Associated Project(s): 
    Collection and Donation of Abandoned Bicycles

    Friends,

    Thanks for all the wonderful bicycles that UIUC donated to Working Bikes programs.  We estimate that we received over 330 bicycles from the 2017 collection last week.

    99% of the bikes will be repaired and given away locally or internationally for free.  The other three or four bikes out of the 330 will be fixed and sold to support our mission.

    Most of the bicycles will be sent the Lesotho with Bikes for Lesotho.  These will be loaded tomorrow and Wednesday.

    We also have many local partner organizations that receive free bikes.

     

    Sincerely,

    Lee Ravenscroft

    workingbikes.org

  19. Proposal for membership in the Green Sports Alliance

    Associated Project(s): 
    Division of Intercollegiate Athletics (DIA) Climate Action Plan
    DIA Green Team [ARCHIVED]

    Gopal Pareek presented a proposal for DIA to join the Green Sports Alliance to Brett Stillwell, with the attached files.  Brett indicated willingness to join and committed to completing the application for a standard membership ($500).

    https://greensportsalliance.org/about/

    Attached Files: 

  20. Bio gas is Big and getting Bigger

    Associated Project(s): 
    Use Renewable Natural Gas

     

    Bio gas is Big and getting Bigger

     

    EIA reports that renewable natural gas (RNG) from biogas collected at landfills and other facilities, is increasingly used to meet government targets for renewable fuel production. In 2016, about 189 million gallons of RNG were used to meet about 82% of federal targets set specifically for cellulosic biofuel.

      

    Combined production of liquefied RNG and compressed RNG grew from 33 million gallons of ethanol equivalent in 2014 to 189 million gallons in 2016. EPA projects 238 million gallons of cellulosic biofuel will be produced in 2018.

     

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