Progress Report for Washington College

Various trends and conclusions may be drawn from the analysis of data recently collected. Total greenhouse gas emissions increased slightly by 22 tons (less than 1%) from 2009 to 2010 for one particular reason: as older facilities on campus are being renovated, their systems are being converted from steam heat to electric heat. While the College is using less heating oil to generate steam heat, it did realize a significant increase in purchased electricity (up roughly 11% from 2009 to 2010).
The bulk of the electrical generation comes from coal-fired plants (50%), so decreasing electrical
consumption and finding cleaner sources of electrical power hold the greatest potential for a
significant decrease in emissions. Examples include: installing motion sensors in bathrooms,
locker rooms, hallways, labs and classrooms; replacing light bulbs with light-emitting diodes
(LEDs) or compact fluorescents (CFLs); replacing antiquated hvac systems with geothermal
systems; installing a ground-mount solar collection system; and improving the quality and
quantity of energy-saving reminders to students, faculty and staff.
It should be noted that several projects currently under construction on campus will result
in significant reductions of electricity usage in the not-too-distant future: geothermal hvac
systems for the Miller Library and William Smith Hall; and motion detectors for hallways and
bathrooms in Minta Martin Hall and Cain Gym. According to the general contractor for the
library and Smith Hall project, existing electricity usage is roughly 2,023,814 kilowatt hours
(kWh) per year. It is estimated that, by using a new geothermal hvac system for those facilities,
only 896,694 kWh per year will be needed, resulting in a reduction of 1,127,119 kWh per year.
The reduction in greenhouse gas emissions would be roughly 2,671,274 pounds (or 1,335 tons)
per year. From a percentage basis it would be 56% reduction in emissions for those facilities
alone, and a reduction of 7% of the College’s overall emissions.
In addition, low-flow shower heads are being installed in Minta Martin Hall and in the
Cain Gym’s locker rooms, which will ultimately assist the College in its effort to reduce water
consumption and help in reducing the load that is managed by the Chestertown wastewater
treatment plant.
The amount of solid waste going into landfills has been cut almost in half since 2008, and
could even be trimmed by as much as 75%. The College initiated a modest recycling program in
Fall 2008, and hired a Research Associate at the Center for Environment & Society to coordinate
its operations. The recycling program was expanded in 2009 to include the whole campus, and
in 2010 was fully integrated into the core administration of the campus. The results of this action
speak for themselves: 256.5 tons of solid waste were picked up from the campus in 2010,
compared to 357 tons in 2009 and 450 in 2008. In addition, in 2010 phone books for staff and
faculty were provided only on request, and not automatically provided for everyone, as before.
In 2009, the College ordered 425 phone books; in 2010, that number was reduced to 200, and in
2011 that number was reduced again by nearly half to 125, thereby saving costs associated with
printing, transporting, and recycling them.