From Buttstock to President Bennet’s office, the Environmental Organizer’s Network (EON) has worked diligently to push the use of renewable energy on campus.
EON was at Buttstock on Saturday, April 24, encouraging students to write postcards to President Bennet asking him to consider using green energy to power the campus. Students were given Ben and Jerry’s ice cream bars for writing.
Over 523 postcards were written, and EON presented 100 of the “most thoughtful” cards to Bennet at his office hours the following Tuesday.
“Over one-fifth of the Wesleyan student body knows about [green energy],” said EON member Amy Gomberg ’04, who worked at the Buttstock table. “Over 100 of the people had something really interesting to say about it. They were concerned about this issue.”
In honor of Earth Day, which was also on April 24, EON purchased $650 worth of green energy certificates, equivalent to the extra cost of powering the campus with green energy for one day.
The energy grid that powers the campus gets energy from various sources, from nuclear and fossil fuel power to wind and solar power. EON’s money went to buying energy from green sources to power the grid, though there is no way to tell if the energy went to Wesleyan.
“You can’t be sure that a ‘green’ electron from a solar panel or a windmill goes into the grid, travels through the system, and comes out in MoCon,” said EON member Nora Connor ’07. “We paid to replace or ‘offset’ all the energy used at Wesleyan on Earth Day with energy produced by wind turbines and a small hydro project in Daysville, Conn.”
The money to purchase the green energy certificates was purchased through donations from students, staff, faculty and administrators.
“The main goal was to show the Administration that in fact there are tons of faculty, staff, admin and students that are all in favor of Wesleyan buying green energy and incorporating green energy into our energy grid,” Gomberg said.
During the 2001-2002 academic year, the University purchased a percentage of energy from the New England Green Energy Co-Op, which went bankrupt the same year.
“They got a lot of great press coverage and it made the students really happy,” said EON member Dave Carhart ’05.
Since then the University has purchased from no green energy sources, but according to Vice-President for Finance and Administration Marcia Bromberg, they are looking for new sources with local investment.
“We may still [purchase green energy],” Bromberg said. “Probably not from this company that EON has identified [EAD Energy] because it’s a for-profit company. There are also some not-for-profits selling green energy credits. They invest in regional projects, whereas EAD invests in Texas and other places.”
Gomberg argued that it is important to provide green energy regardless of if the company operates for profit.
“[Energy is] a marketable item,” Gomberg said. “You pay for energy whether it’s coming from renewable sources or non-renewable sources.”
As another part of their green energy campaign, EON has asked Bennet to sign the Campus Climate Pledge, which requests that universities and colleges commit themselves to “reducing the greenhouse gas emissions of their institution, at a minimum, to 1990 levels by 2010, to 10 percent below 1990 levels by 2020, and to 75-85 percent below current levels in the long term.”
According to Vice-President for Finance and Administration Marcia Bromberg, Bennet is prepared to sign the pledge after altering it to read “measurable greenhouse gas emissions.”
“We don’t want to claim something we can’t measure,” Bromberg said. She added that, while the University can measure fossil fuel use, it is more difficult to accurately measure electricity use, which accounts for some greenhouse emissions.
“I think it is honorable of him to ensure that this document that he is signing is actually something that Wesleyan will be able to achieve, a point he made very clear in his discussions with EON about the Pledge,” Connor said.
According to Bromberg, the Administration is already taking many of the measures outlined in the climate pledge.
“We’ve reduced [greenhouse emissions] over six percent from 1990 levels,” Bromberg said. “In general we’re working on a lot of energy efficiency initiatives to reduce the use of electricity. In our own way the University was doing these things anyway.”
“I think all of EON was shocked and happily surprised with that news,” Connor said of the University’s actions. “It turns out that Wesleyan has been taking many small steps all along toward being more environmentally friendly, both because it’s good for the planet and because it saves the University money.”
One of the most visible elements of EON’s campaign will appear at Spring Fling Wednesday, where a flatbed solar panel truck called “Rolling Sunlight” will partially power the concerts.
The truck, which is owned by Greenpeace and is currently on a “Northeast tour” to college campuses, will power at 80 percent efficiency if it is cloudy, and will run on battery power if it rains, even if the event is moved indoors.
“As long as Spring Fling is going on it will be able to power [it],” Carhart said.
According to Carhart, the “Rolling Sunlight” is another way to make green energy more visible to the entire campus.
“It’s symbolic of what we want the Administration to do,” Carhart said. “We want the Administration to take the same steps with the University as a whole.”
The “Rolling Sunlight” will also serve complimentary slushies, made with solar energy.
Looking back at the efforts EON has made throughout the academic year toward green energy, members and Bromberg have said they are pleased with the results.
“They’ve really raised the consciousness of the campus,” Bromberg said. “I think it is going to become more and more something that we’re going to be thoughtful about.”
“It’s only going to grow stronger and more effective as members become more experienced and the group grows,” Carhart said, specifically noting the participation of freshmen this year. “I don’t see our demand for green energy going away any time soon. That’s a goal that we’re committed to as a group.”
“We’re all sort of shocked at how much has gotten done, and we’re still moving forward!” Connor said.
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