Minnesota Schools Cutting Carbon

Here is the list of recommendations for students or student sponsored projects. You will recognize many of your own suggestions below:

1. (Staples Main Campus) Evaluate performance and operation of the boilers (retro-commissioning/reprogramming) to improve boiler and heating efficiencies.

2. (Staples Main Campus) Evaluate lighting levels in the cafeteria and consider turning down banks of lights during bright days. Consider light sensors in combination with automatic lighting controls. Consider motion detectors in hallways and cafeteria area.

3. (Staples Main Campus) Install and evaluate the use of the Vending Machine Miser provided by MPCA. Based on this trial, consider purchase of additional Vending Machine Misers.

Information Regarding Vending Miser:
http://www.p2pays.org/energy/Vending.pdf
http://www.redwoodenergy.org/uploads/VendingMiser_FAQ.pdf
http://sustainability.unc.edu/Portals/0/Documents/Vending Miser Handout.pdf

4. (Staples Ag Center) Consider a small wind turbine for electrical energy production or solar energy to provide additional thermal heat for hot water usage or photovoltaic electrical energy.

5. (Staples Ag Center) Reduce the amount of mowed lawn areas to reduce emissions associated with lawn mowers and to reduce the amount of fertilizer, herbicide, and irrigation associated with lawn maintenance. Possibilities include native prairie grasses and rain gardens.

6. (Staples Ag Center) Consider an alternative heating source to natural gas combustion for the crop dryer.

7. (Staples West Campus) With the switch to the Vista Operating System, work out the automatic computer sleep and shutdown settings and/or encourage and verify manual shutdowns of computers and computer monitors when not in use.

8. (Brainerd Campus) Evaluate filter replacement frequency at the air handling units, any effect on pressure drops and fan energy consumptions, and whether more frequent filter replacement would pay for itself in energy cost savings.

9. (Brainerd Campus) Evaluate the kilowatt energy consumed by multiple small refrigerators and how much could be saved through the use of one large, common refrigerator.

10. (Brainerd Campus) Evaluate the automatic computer sleep and shutdown settings and/or encourage and verify manual shutdowns of computers and computer monitors when not in use, especially with “non-computer lab” computers, such as staff or media center computers.

11. (Brainerd Campus) Based on the trial of the Vending Machine Miser at Staples, consider purchase of additional Vending Machine Misers.

12. (Brainerd Campus) Consider purchase and installation of a corn burner for the greenhouse, similar to the unit installed at the Staples Ag Center. http://www.cleanenergyresourceteams.org/files/CS_Biomass_CentralLakes.pdf

13. (Brainerd Campus) Consider purchase and installation of an insulated cover for the greenhouse to reduce heat loss at night.

14. (Brainerd Campus) Convert the dishwasher from a high temperature system to a chemical sanitation system allowing the use of lower temperature water and energy savings.

15. (Brainerd Campus) Currently, the kitchen exhausts are run continuously. Evaluate whether the exhaust system can be modified or otherwise maintained so that it can be shut down daily when not in use. Generally this results in cost savings of $3 per cfm per year.

16. (Brainerd Campus) Replace open air soda and food coolers with enclosed coolers.

17. (Brainerd Campus) Repair door seals and sweeps where needed.

18. (Brainerd Campus) Consider reducing the amount of mowed lawn areas to reduce emissions associated with lawn mowers and to reduce the amount of fertilizer, herbicide, and irrigation associated with lawn maintenance. Possibilities include native prairie grasses and rain gardens.

19. (Brainerd Campus) Evaluate lighting levels in common areas and windowed stairwells and consider turning off lights during bright days. Consider light sensors in combination with automatic lighting controls. Consider motion detectors in hallways and common areas.

20. (Brainerd Campus) Evaluate increased use of virtual and on-line learning resources. For certain programs, can on-line learning be effective and reduce commuting days?

21. (Brainerd Campus) Evaluate Monday/Wednesday/Friday and Tuesday/Thursday scheduling options to reduce commuting days.

22. (Brainerd Campus) Organize, promote, and provide incentives, such as pre-paid gas cards, for car-pooling among students and staff.

23. (Brainerd Campus) Organize and fund a bike “library” to provide students or staff within biking distance free access to bikes.

Please feel free to contact me with any questions about the schools cutting carbon project, the above recommendations, or any other questions or comments.

Thanks,
Mike Hult
ERM