As campus winds down for winter break, energy saving efforts are underway for the annual Holiday Energy Savings Initiative. Led by Energy Management in partnership with Buildings Maintenance and Operations, this campus-wide initiative has collectively avoided more than $5.2 million in utility costs since 2005.
Beginning Dec. 15, temperatures in classrooms and teaching labs will be lowered. Further conservation measures including lowering building temperature setpoints, turning off unnecessary lights and equipment, and closing doors and windows to reduce utility consumption will begin Dec. 23 when the university closes.
Research labs, animal facilities, and certain designated support spaces are excluded from the temperature set-point reduction.
Faculty and staff can help the university save even more energy this year by following these steps before leaving for the winter break:
- Shutdown electronics/appliances and unplug power cords from the outlets (computers, faxes, printers, coffee makers, mini-refrigerators, etc.).
- In the lab, close inactive fume hood sashes and power down non-essential lab equipment.
- Close windows and shut interior and exterior doors. Report windows and doors that are left open or unable to be closed to the Customer Service Center at 919-515-2991.
- Turn off lights in rooms that are not in use.
- Any leaky faucets or insecure water sources that may cause flooding should be reported to the Customer Service Center at 919-515-2991.
To learn more about the Holiday Energy Savings Initiative, including the temperature setback schedule, visit the Holiday Energy Savings Initiative website. Questions about the initiative can be directed to save_energy@ncsu.edu.
This post was originally published in Sustainability News.