University Sustainability Initiatives
Geothermal Technology to Foster Carbon-Neutral Campus
MUM has begun a pilot project to install geothermal technology for heating and cooling older campus buildings — part of a broader plan to make the University carbon neutral in global warming emissions in order to comply with President Bevan Morris’s signing of the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment.
“We have to come up with a lot of BTUs to heat our buildings,” said Mark Stimson, the University’s sustainability coordinator who is also accredited by I.G.S.H.P.A. as a geothermal installer. “We use 50 million cubic feet of gas each winter, and that pumps out a lot of carbon into the air.”
Geothermal had already been in use in a number of the University’s new buildings, but this project is retrofitting the whole campus. The electricity for geothermal heat pumps will be provided by solar panels and wind turbines, leading to a carbon neutral outcome.
“Combining sun and wind is good because here we have wind in winter and sun in the summer,” Mr. Stimson said. “The plan is to put in as much power as we use so we will be carbon neutral.”
Geothermal technology makes use of the earth, the greatest solar energy collector, by circulating water through looped plastic pipe that’s buried approximately 15 feet underground where the temperature is a constant 55 degrees. During the coldest months, the method effectively takes the heat out of the ground, concentrates it using heat pumps, and circulates it in buildings like any other heating system. During summer, the process is reversed, taking advantage of the cooler earth temperature. Campus geothermal will be designed to allow more control of zones of heating or cooling, providing more comfort.
The crew is using an Iowa-manufactured rig that drills horizontally such that geothermal piping can be installed underneath lawns, parking lots, and utilities without too much disturbance of the surface.
After the pilot the University will be able to assess any possible installation problems associated with retrofits and budget for campus-wide installation. The expense of wind turbines and solar panels will be made up in utility bill savings.
“Case studies I’ve been reading of other school systems report 44 percent savings in energy costs,” Mr. Stimson said. “As the price of natural gas rises, then the cost savings increase.”
The project is being carried out in collaboration with Alliant Energy, subject to pending legislation, and another partner who is able to take advantage of tax incentives for alternative energy ventures.
“People will be more comfortable and more ecological at the same time,” Mr. Stimson said. “It’s not like people will have to make a sacrifice.”
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