Your “green” habits have been – and continue to be – a powerful force in our University-wide initiative to reduce wasteful energy use. Between your efforts and Facilities’ initiatives (especially those to set new summer and winter target temperatures), the University has saved $585,824 so far this year. Since we have almost 19,000 employees University-wide, that’s an average of $31 saved per person!
As a new winter approaches, the University remains committed to both fiscal and environmental responsibility, and will maintain the winter temperature guidelines announced this past January (the nationally recognized standard for heating, 68°F, for most University buildings; the only exceptions are URMC patient-care areas, which will be set to 72°F in accordance with recommended hospital temperatures, and laboratories that need to be set at a specific temperature). Facilities mechanics began the winter temperature modifications at the beginning of November, and are scheduled to complete them in the next few weeks. These adjustments are an important part of helping to reduce our energy bill; in fact, in only two months last winter (February and March), the University saved more than $250,000. (To put that in perspective, this past spring and summer $327,915 worth of energy was saved University-wide — $101,530 at the Medical Center and $226,385 across the River Campus.)
While these savings are significant, reducing wasteful energy use is an ongoing endeavor, and we’re asking that you continue to do your part by implementing some of the ideas listed below – especially as many offices will be closing for the Thanksgiving holiday:
- Conserve heat by closing windows and doors. Pull blinds shut at night to prevent heat from seeping out of windows.
- Switch off lights and office equipment when not in use. Remove electronic devices (e.g., cell phone and laptop chargers) from outlets — they draw “phantom” energy even when they’re not turned on or in use.
- Don’t use personal heaters, which are energy hogs. Instead, bring a sweater to keep in the office, and wear seasonally appropriate footwear.
- Turn off your computer and printer at night. We estimate that shutting down for 14 hours every day can save about $9 a month, and if it is done consistently with even a fraction of our computers, we stand to save hundreds of thousands of dollars annually. When you leave your workspace for breaks of 30 minutes or more, simply switch off your monitor.