CEAC, the Campus Environmental Advisory Committee, is developing a building policy. We welcome your input, please leave comments and suggestions for improvement, in addition to any questions you have.
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In fiscal year 1991, the first year for which reliable energy data is available, the College’s physical plant comprised 1,916,865 square feet with a student population of approximately 2000 and faculty/staff population of approximately 750. In 2007, Williams now occupies 2,375,938 square feet. While our building area has expanded by 24% over that period, the student population has remained constant, although faculty/staff have increased to 990.
The campus footprint is continuing to increase. The North and South Academic buildings will add 91,000 square feet to the campus. In addition, it is projected that as the Stetson-Sawyer project is completed and new work begins on Weston Field and the possibility of other athletic facilities projects that the College will add another 100,000+ square feet over the next five years.
As Williams’ built environment has expanded, energy use per square foot (also known as energy intensity) has also grown. In 2007, the energy intensity was 175 BTU per 1000 square feet, a 20% increase over the 148 BTU per 1000 square feet in 1991. This increase in energy intensity reflects greater use of electronic devices in offices, classrooms and dorms (computers and other new technologies), as well as more demanding standards for ventilation and cooling.
The net result of these two trends – the college’s overall growth and the higher rates of energy consumption — is a substantial rise in emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. In 1991, the college’s total carbon “footprint” was close to 21,000 metric tons; in 2006 it was over 29,000 tons, a 40% increase. (2007 saw a significant decrease in emissions thanks to conservation efforts and the purchase of cleaner heating fuels and electricity.)
In January 2007, the Board of Trustees voted to reduce emissions to 19,000 metric tons, or 10% below 1990/91 levels, by 2020; and to adopt the principles of sustainability.
Building area is a primary driver of energy consumption, as heating, cooling and power requirements grow proportionally to the expanding built environment. As energy consumption increases so do emissions. Therefore continued campus growth – and certainly growth at current rates – appears fundamentally at odds with the College’s commitment to sustainability.
We recommend the following steps be taken:
1) Decisions to undertake new construction should be made in the context of the College’s commitment to reducing its greenhouse gas emissions.
2) Just as new projects are assigned a construction cost budget in keeping with the college’s larger financial plans, so, too, new projects should be assigned an energy /carbon budget in keeping with the College’s sustainability goals.
3) Any project that would increase the College’s size or significantly increase energy consumption (e.g. adding air-conditioning) should be subject to a comprehensive energy and environmental assessment before final approval.