Green fever takes over Rose

This week the Rose-Hulman Sustainability Club had student volunteers sign a “contract” stating that they will help conserve energy around campus. In the Hulman Memorial Union this past Wednesday and in the Commons on Thursday, the club advertised their goal of reducing energy expenditure by 10% between December and April.

The resources they were concentrating on were electricity, paper, and water with helpful tips such as shutting down computers when not in use, run full loads of laundry, use fluorescent light bulbs, et cetera.

The electricity at Rose costs approximately 1.2 million dollars annually. The club hopes to save about $35,000, out of which is spent on a benefit for those who signed up-a free mp3 player. One of their strategies involves circulating a petition on ANGEL to lower the thermostat a degree in all buildings, a fund drive to install motion sensor light switches in classrooms, a campus compost heap, and a campus garden.

Rose has not been idle in reducing energy expenditures. Some of the strategies that the school has already implemented include waterless urinals in restrooms in Olin and Moench, turning off climate control systems in buildings without occupancy from 11:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m., using compact fluorescent light bulbs where possible, and purchasing a thermal imaging camera to identify locations where the most improvement to efficiency can be gained.