EE Pilot Program Underway

In February, the Office of Sustainability, along with Green Team captains in Tigert Hall, launched the energy efficiency (EE) pilot program. The campaign aims to reduce unnecessary electricity consumption through simple behavioral changes—without sacrificing productivity.

This effort is important for several reasons: cost, carbon neutrality, and leadership. In 2008, UF spent $40 million on electricity. Increased electrical costs of approximately 28.3 percent in January 2009 further emphasize the need to reduce demand. Reducing electrical consumption is also a critical component in UF’s goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2025. Finally, Tigert Hall is the symbolic home of UF’s leadership. Energy efficiency is a top priority for UF, so it stands to reason that behavior change should start there.

Approximately 40% of the electrical demand in Tigert is for personal office use. As a result, IT staff have switched computers to energy-saving settings and participants are being asked to disable their screen-savers. Participants are also encouraged to use power strips that blocks power to peripheral devices (e.g., printers and chargers) when not in use. Finally, a “Last to Leave” policy is being implemented so that common office equipment and lighting will be turned off at the end of every work day.

An “electricity dashboard” allows participants to monitor their progress and includes the current cost of electricity and the carbon generated per hour. The dashboard is mounted in the hallway outside of Room 202 in Tigert Hall and can be viewed online here. Educational materials for the campaign are available on the Green Team Google Group website.

The pilot will run through early April. If it’s successful, the campaign will be rolled out to other buildings and Green Teams across campus.

Turning Bedding into Biomass

Through the efforts of Robert Hockman, the now-retired assistant director of medical/health administration at the College of Veterinary Medicine, a win-win solution was found for disposing of a portion of the bedding from stables.

Disposal of used stable bedding was a problem for the Large Animal Hospital of the Veterinary Medical Center (VMC). The bedding is a mixture of large quantities of wood shavings, horse manure, urine, and in some cases pathogenic bacteria such as Salmonella. And with the stalls requiring 150 to 200 cubic yards of bedding each month, it builds up quickly.

Initially, options for disposal included sending the used bedding to a landfill or incinerator; both are costly and have environmental implications. On-site storage of the material was eliminated, due to space requirements and the potential to cause contaminated run-off. Without a solution for handling the used bedding, operation of the Large Animal Hospital was imperiled.

Then Hockman considered the benefits of the bedding; it’s organic and has a high nitrogen content. He developed a program that included treating the bedding and sourcing it out.

Special dumpsters, designed by the university and built by Roger’s Welding, are equipped with copper tubes in the bottom that inject steam into the bedding. The bedding temperature is raised to 210o and maintained for one hour, killing the pathogenic bacteria but leaving the valuable components intact.

After it’s cooled, the bedding is transported to the Florida State Division of Forestry where it is used as compostable biomass, used for growing pine seedlings.

- by Patrick T. Colahan, DVM, DACVS

A Big Thank You

The Office of Sustainability would like to thank all who made Gator game day recycling a success. With in-kind and financial help from Sam’s Club and Pepsi, as well as hours of hard work from UF volunteers and staff, over 25,700 pounds of cans and bottles were collected.

Game day recycling efforts are headed up by the TailGator Green Team, a group of student volunteers. Every game day, here at the swamp, the TailGator Green Team sets up their tent where volunteers sign-in, pick up their recycling tools, namely rubber gloves and bags, and get their tailgating zone assignment.

The volunteers visit tailgating parties across campus, dropping off bags, so football fans can collect their recyclables, and educating fans on the benefits of recycling. Just before kick-off, the volunteers visit the tailgators again, check the bags, and remove any non-recyclables.

Claire Long coordinates the recycling efforts and is quick to point out that game day recycling wouldn’t be possible without support from staff from the physical plant and the University Alumni Association (UAA). Roving the campus, physical plant employees collect the tied-off bags from all of the tailgating spots and consolidate the recyclables for pick-up. The UAA also contracts to have the recyclables separated out from the trash during the post-game stadium cleanup.

Besides diverting waste from the landfill, the team has racked up almost 900 volunteer hours in over 500 shifts. Each shift lasts from two to four hours and when the bags are tied-off, volunteers are treated with praise and refreshments. If you’re interested in volunteering with the TailGator Green Team visit the Gator Green Team Facebook page on the UF network.

UF Recognized for Sustainable Strategy

The University of Florida was recognized by the Jessie Ball duPont Fund, for our comprehensive sustainability strategy. In the organization’s Fall 2008 e-publication “Notes from the Field” fund managers praised UF for operating with sustainability as a core value describing a variety of UF’s accomplishments.

Actions, such as President Machen’s signing the American College and University President’s Climate Change Commitment in 2006 and environmental efforts lead by grass-root student organizations, were given high marks. Accolades were also given to Gator Dining Services, for both their drive to buy regionally-sourced products and the training they provide to all food service employees on sustainable concepts and practices.

Efforts by Facilities, Planning and Construction to achieve LEED certification for campus construction and renovations were acknowledged as was the Florida Institute for Sustainable Energy Technology Incubator, a facility that helps bridge the gap between academic research in energy and commercial application.

Hands-on work in the Natural Area Teaching Lab was applauded for giving students the opportunity to learn about the importance of ecology and biotic diversity, along with understanding the potential impacts of storm water runoff in losing natural habitats.

These are just a few of UF’s actions noted in the article. To read the article in its entirety, please visit the Jessie Ball duPont Fund website.

Teaming up for Sustainability

Last semester over 30 Green Team captains representing departments ranging from the College of Dentistry to the UF Police Department came together to discuss sustainability initiatives that they are implementing in their departments. One of the themes of the meeting was building communication and collaboration with other Green Teams and the Office of Sustainability. This meeting was the largest gathering to date of the nascent Green Team network and demonstrated the growing enthusiasm that UF’s staff and faculty have for transforming their university into a sustainable campus. The meeting was also an opportunity for Jason Fults, the newly-hired Green Team Project Manager, to meet the captains face-to-face and to learn more about the challenges and successes that their respective teams have experienced.

This semester there are some exciting plans afoot for the Green Team network, including a “Sustainable Solutions Awards Program” and a pilot energy conservation campaign in Tigert Hall that will enlist Green Teams in deploying best practices in energy conservation behaviors. If successful, this project could serve as a model for other administrative buildings on campus.

There are currently more than sixty Green Teams working across campus to reduce waste and resource consumption. These groups are at the forefront of developing sustainable solutions for UF through the implementation of sustainable best practices in their departments and throughout the campus community. To learn more about the Green Team network, visit our Google Group. If you’d like to get involved, contact Jason Fults at Jason@ufl.edu or 392-7578, ext. 34.

Faculty Workshop for Sustainability in Academics at UF

Call for Faculty Participation – February 2009

February 23 and 24, 2009
Reitz Union 235, 11:45 a.m.—2:45 p.m.

Faculty members across the University of Florida regularly teach, and do research, focused or related to some aspect of sustainability. In November 2008 President Machen announced a strategic initiative in sustainability, with the goal of encouraging faculty to consider developing a nationally recognized inter-disciplinary academic program balanced between teaching, research, and academic service, utilizing UF’s already deep resources in this area. He appointed Professor Kim Tanzer to work through his office, in collaboration with Provost’s Fellow and Professor Tom Ankersen, to develop the initiative with the help of UF faculty, by May 2009.

In order to assure wide-spread faculty participation across the university, Tanzer and Ankersen will hold faculty workshops to which all members of the faculty, including academic administrators, are invited. The workshops will also be used to help implement the Vision for Sustainable UF, developed through the Office of Sustainability last academic year.

Two workshops will be held, in mid-February. One will focus on curriculum, including teaching and learning, university-wide programs, and service learning. The second will focus on potential for collaborative research. Faculty members are encouraged to attend portions or all of the workshops, either or both days, as their schedules permit.

For more information on the workshops, and other ways for faculty to get involved with the academic sustainability efforts at UF, visit the Office of Sustainability’s Faculty Involvement page.

Faculty members who have questions and/or would like to attend one or both days’ sessions should contact Kim Tanzer, tanzer@ufl.edu by February 16, 2009. Reservations for box lunches (free of charge) are essential.

Gator Dining's Green Takeout

UF Customers taking their food to go now have a greener option. Gator Dining Services is now offering reusable to-go containers at three locations on campus – Gator Corner, Fresh Food Company, and Home Zone in the Reitz Union.

These containers are dishwasher-safe and made to be reused over and over again, helping cut down on the waste produced from their traditional disposable counterparts.

“Between our two dining halls, 158,000 disposable to-go containers were used last year”, said Susanne Lewis, Sustainability Coordinator for Gator Dining. “This program will serve as another great way to minimize waste on our campus.”

The process allows customers take their food to go as usual, bring the reusable container back at their earliest convenience at which time it gets washed by Gator Dining, and the cycle continues. Up to two reusable containers can be checked out per Gator 1 card.

The first 100 people to sign up for the program will also receive a free reusable cup which can be used campus-wide to receive 50 cent discounts on fountain beverages. There will also be other prizes distributed throughout the semester to reward customers who are taking an active part in waste minimization.

Customers can sign up for the program with their Gator 1 card at the register of any of the three locations. A $7.00 refundable deposit will be taken from a Declining Balance or Flex Bucks account – this deposit is refunded in full at the end of the year as long as all containers are returned.

For more information, visit Gator Dining.