Green Revolving Fund

What is the green revolving fund?

澳门六合彩官网直播 established its green revolving fund in 1980, making it the first college or university in the United States to establish such a fund. In 2011, 澳门六合彩官网直播 strengthened its green revolving fund by joining the Billion Dollar Green Challenge and injecting an additional $1 million into its fund. Throughout its history, 澳门六合彩官网直播鈥檚 green revolving fund has supported energy and water conservation improvements to save energy, reduce carbon emissions, reduce energy costs, and regenerate funds for future sustainability upgrades.

How does our fund work?

Project selection

Facilities Management maintains a list of possible energy conservation projects, collected from commissioning reports and energy audit recommendations. Projects are either suggested by students, faculty and staff or are selected from the list of energy conservation measures. Each possible project is assessed on several financial metrics, unit cost per metric ton of CO2 abated, and its innovation and educational value. 

 

Reinvestment

Projects funded by the green revolving fund pay 100% of the savings it generates back into the fund until the project cost is fully repaid. After the project has paid for itself, all the energy savings generated reduce expenses in the utility budget until the end of the project鈥檚 lifespan. This financing mechanism reduces operating costs and ensures the fund will maintain a balance over time.

In addition, utility rebates for energy projects not funded by the green revolving fund are deposited into the fund account, providing a supplemental revenue stream to grow the fund over time.

Evaluation and monitoring

All projects undergo measurement and verification to validate estimated energy savings and ensure the long-term viability of the green revolving fund. By measuring energy use before and after the project installation, and accounting for weather variation, we can ensure that the project is working as intended.

What projects have been funded?

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Insulation and LED lighting retrofits

At the beginning of the Billion Dollar Green Challenge, we focused on 鈥渓ow-hanging fruit鈥 鈥 projects that could be completed quickly with a short payback period. Working with Honeywell, we installed insulation upgrades and retrofit lighting to LEDs in many buildings on campus.
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Commissioning

We have undertaken several commissioning projects using the green revolving fund. These projects allowed us to inspect mechanical equipment in Heritage Hall, Miller Auditorium, Seelye Center, Richmond Center for Visual Arts and the Student Recreation Center, along with reducing energy being wasted due to incorrect operations.
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Heat recovery unit at Haenicke

Installed energy recovery coils in exhaust plenums of North and South Haenicke. Projected lifetime metrics include $1,766,721 financial savings, 180% return on investment, 663,986 MMBtu energy savings and 35,267 MTCO2e emissions abated.