Dear Energy Generation SWATeam,

As the campus prepares to issue a request for pricing (RFP) for renewable energy, the question has arisen whether electricity derived from natural gas from abandoned coal mines would "count" towards our climate action goals.  My understanding is that in some states (including California) this type of energy is defined by statute as renewable, but this is not the case in Illinois -- so we would have to make our own judgment.  I also note that at least one such project has been certified by the Voluntary Carbon Standard (http://www.terrapass.com/our-projects/cambria-33-abandoned-coal-methane-capture-project/),

which is the same standard under which our campus carbon reductions are being certified.

The basic idea behind this energy source is that abandoned coal mines naturally leak methane into the atmosphere, and as I'm sure you know methane has a considerably larger effect on climate than does CO2.

These projects aim to capture that methane and combust it to form CO2, thus reducing the overall climate impact while also generating electricity.

I'd like to ask your SWATeam to examine this issue, and provide a recommendation to the iCAP Working Group as to whether abandoned coal mine methane capture "counts" as renewable energy in the context of our climate goals (as represented in the iCAP and envisioned revisions to the iCAP).  You may also wish to examine whether landfill gas capture "counts."

It would be most helpful if I could receive your recommendation before the end of August.

Cheers,

Ben

Ben,

     We will take a look at this.   But there are two points I'd like to make right away:

1. It does not appear that California considers this renewable energy (nor does Illinois, as you say):

http://www.dsireusa.org/incentives/incentive.cfm?Incentive_Code=CA25R&re=0&ee=0

2.  Since this source of methane is exhaustible, I don't see any rationale to consider it renewable.   It may be a worthwhile thing to do, but that is a separate issue.   Renewable is a high standard.

                Scott

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Hi Scott,

You raise a fantastic point that mine gas is not renewable in the sense that of renewing itself indefinitely (in contrast to wind and solar). 

However, like landfill gas, there appears to be a clear climate benefit to utilizing it rather than allowing it to leak to the atmosphere.

I suppose I should rephrase my question: should the campus consider mine gas (or landfill gas) as helping to meet our climate goals, and if so how should it fit in?  Should we consider it on the same playing field as true renewables?  Or should we separately pursue it as a way of reducing our CO2 emissions in the energy sector, but not count it towards our renewables goals?

Thanks very much,

Ben

The Facebook page for the Game Day Recycling Challenge has been launched.  For the October 25th homecoming game we will be setting up 3 bin stations throughout the stadium for recycling, compost, and landfill.  All collected weights will be reported to the Game Day website for the national competition.  More details to follow.

Here is the Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/events/518311078270593/.

Here is the site for the Game Day Challenge: http://gamedaychallenge.org/.

From: Milbrandt, Janet
Sent: Tuesday, July 15, 2014 2:02 PM
To: Lavey, Warren Gary; McCall, Benjamin; Bartels, Bart A
Cc: Bohlen, Kayci; Taylor, Mark A
Subject: RE: new State of Illinois UPS contract

I am forwarding you to the Sourcing Office for the University of IL.

From: Lavey, Warren Gary
Sent: Tuesday, July 15, 2014 9:27 AM
To: Milbrandt, Janet; McCall, Benjamin; Bartels, Bart A
Subject: new State of Illinois UPS contract

Hello, Janet.  The State of Illinois is implementing a new contract with UPS for ground and air package delivery services.  UIUC is an eligible customer under this contract.

This contract was awarded pursuant to the Illinois Transportation Sustainability Procurement Program Act of 2013, with environmental factors comprising 20 percent of the bidder evaluation criteria.  The contract includes provisions for tracking emissions and fuel consumption related to the services provided.  Alternative fuels, including biofuels, and cleaner vehicles are encouraged for UPS's services under this contract. I don't have any information on the rates under the new contract.

Can you arrange a meeting with UIUC's UPS contract representative to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of migrating UIUC's shipments from UIUC's existing UPS contract to the new State of Illinois contract?  I would like to participate in this meeting.

Thanks and best wishes.

Today recycling containers were placed on the trash bin at Ikenberry Commons.  The purpose is to collect and recycle all the nitrile gloves used by food service employees.  The weight of the gloves will be recorded to measure environmental impact.  

ISTC now has a Bike Rack made out of recycled gloves on display in their atrium.  This is an example of what can be created with the gloves recycled through the Kimberly-Clark glove recycling program.

Construction is underway.  The 3rd and 2nd floors are mostly complete. Unfortunately we’re finding that the sensor coverage is not quite as broad as the spec sheets say, so there’s been a change order for some additional devices.

Many thanks to Jeevaka Somaratna for his help as the teaching assistant for the first year of the CEE 398 Project Based Learning course!  The new TAs for Fall 2014 are Paul Littleton and Alek Heilstedt.

The Parking Department may choose to utilize this Department of Energy Program for promoting public use EV charging stations.

Brian Yeung is planning to enter energy use data for some of the University Housing residence halls into the EPA Portfolio Manager.  He is going to use the same username and password as Nishant is using for other campus buildings.

Professor Ben McCall provided the attached letter of support for the Solar Market Pathways program that CCRPC is coordinating.  It is a system that allows local residential properties to learn more about their options for installing solar on their property. Those interested in doing so could then purchase in bulk at a reduced rate.

LEED Lab

This multidisciplinary immersion course which utilizes the built environment to educate and prepare students to become green building leaders. In the course students assess the performance of existing facilities on campus and chose one building where they will facilitate the LEED for Existing Buildings: Operations & Maintenance (LEED EB:O&M) process with the goal of certifying the facility. At the close of the semester the students are prepared to sit for the LEED EB:O&M professional credential exam. To learn more visit LEED Lab. Under “How” the Welcome Packet and LEED Lab Timing Chart are available for download. To express interest please complete this form.

The LEED Lab Timing Chart is organized in such a way to help with sequencing of the coursework. Faculty can choose to start with campus credits first before focusing on an individual building or go straight to the building level credits.

The LEED v4 O&M Candidate Handbook can be found here. Pages 12-14 outline the job tasks of a LEED AP and what type of information GBCI will be testing. Information in the candidate handbook could be used to establish student learning outcomes for the course.

Jaime Van Mourik
Director, Higher Education
U.S. Green Building Council