Climate Action Plan - Binghamton University

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campus in small increments. The cost-effectiveness of these technologies is directlycorrelated to the availability of these renewable resources. The Southern Tierunfortunately does not have the geographic advantage to effectively harvest wind andsolar energy. A wind map produced by NYSERDA (see below) illustrates the diversity inwind distribution around New York state. On a scale of 1 to 7, the Binghamton area fallsbelow 2 in wind density. Similarly for photovoltaic technologies, NYSERDA’s costestimate shows a near 80-year payback period for a commercial solar installation in thisarea. Therefore, these renewable energy projects should not be evaluated purely based ontheir economic merits but also for their values in education and research.FIGURE 27 - WIND INTSITY MAPPING, NEW YORK STATEA logical first step would be to incorporate a number of renewable energy features in allnew and renovated buildings. As efficiencies improve over time with the advancement ofvarious renewable energy technologies, the University will implement dedicatedrenewable energy projects until all campus electric demand is met without the use offossil fuels.Start date: 200950 percent mark: 2035~ 20 ~
Target completion date: 2050On-Campus Boilers100 Percent Biomass in Central Heating Plant - The campus will continue to increasethe amount of wood chips in the heating plant to offset the use of coal. One of the optionsbeing evaluated is to convert all the boilers to be able to burn 100 percent wood chipsyear round for thermal demands. This option may be expanded to construction of abiomass cogeneration plant to produce electricity and utilize the waste heat for improvedefficiency. This option alone will offset between 31 and 42 percent of the total campusGHG emissions. Again, it is crucial to avoid causing undesirable consequences such asdeforestation with this project. Therefore, the University is taking careful steps to balancethe need for greenhouse gas reduction and eco-sustainability. To sustain long-termviability of this option, we will need to explore other renewable fuel sources that arecompatible with the type of equipment in the heating plant.Start date: 2008Intermediate project evaluation date: 2012If fuel sources are sustainable, target completion date: 2030Solar Thermal - Currently, a small-scale solar thermal system is being tested on campusto evaluate the effectiveness of the technology for domestic hot water preheating. Solarthermal technology transfers heat from the glycol solution that is heated by the sun to atank of cold water to increase the water temperature. Since heat transfer works the mosteffectively with larger temperature differential between the hot and cold fluids, thistechnology is more appropriate for heating up make-up water (nominally at 60˚F) fordomestic hot water supply rather than for building hydronic heating systems (nominallyat 125˚F return temperature). This option will not completely replace the existing naturalgas-fired boilers but can offset up to 5 percent of the total gas requirement.Start date: 200950 percent mark: 2018Target completion date: 2025Campus CommuteCar-Pool Incentive - The University Parking Services office is devising various incentiveprograms to encourage students, faculty and staff to share rides to and from campuswhenever possible. One incentive currently being offered is reserved preferred parkingspaces for multi-passenger vehicles whose program participants save on parking fees andare guaranteed premium parking locations on campus. More information on the programis available at http://parking.binghamton.edu/hov-carpool-program.htm.The University is also pursuing a contract with a company for car-sharing services. The~ 21 ~
Page 1 and 2: CLIMATE ACTION PLANNOVEMBER 10, 200
Page 3 and 4: A STATEMENT FROM PRESIDENT LOIS B.
Page 5 and 6: SECTION 1 - EXECUTIVE SUMMARYIn Sep
Page 8 and 9: We believe that the implementation
Page 10 and 11: live in off-campus student housing
Page 12 and 13: Building Space (Thousands of Sq. Ft
Page 14 and 15: CLIMATE CHANGERecent scientific stu
Page 16 and 17: Since the formation of the TFCCC, t
Page 18 and 19: CALCULATION TOOLSSECTION 3 - CAMPUS
Page 20 and 21: Total Emissions per square foot (kg
Page 22 and 23: SECTION 4 - GREENHOUSE GAS MITIGATI
Page 26 and 27: Summaryintent is to have rental car
Page 28 and 29: Table 2 summarizes the costs and ef
Page 30 and 31: Manufacturing (CAMM) — are cuttin
Page 32 and 33: fruits of the research efforts to b
Page 34 and 35: SECTION 6 - FINANCINGFinancing of t
Page 36: staffing resources will be necessar

Climate Action Plan - Binghamton University

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