Campus Involvement

Green Living

Energy Conservation

To read about what Bowdoin is doing to conserve energy click here.  For what you can do to conserve energy at Bowdoin and beyond - check out the list below.

How To Get Involved!

  • Help out with the Energy Conservation Dorm Competition in the fall! (Contact cpayson@bowdoin.edu)
  • When not in use, turn off the juice!  The last one to leave a dorm room, office, class room or restroom, should turn out the lights.
  • Same goes for copiers and computers - the last one out makes sure they are all shut off.
  • Conserve energy - set the heat at 68°F in winter and the air conditioning to 76°F in summer and dress appropriately.
  • Power down your computers when not in use. If you are going out for lunch and don't want to turn the whole computer off, please turn off the monitor and put the computer in stand by or hibernate mode (the monitor uses more energy than the CPU). Please read the Green Computing Tips for directions in using stand by mode and hibernate mode.
  • Buy Energy Star appliances. To get ideas for your room check out this Energy Star shopping list [pdf].
  • Install a compact fluorescent bulb in your desk lamp - they use a fourth the amount of energy as a regular incandescent bulb. To get one for your room or office, contact Keisha Payson.
  • Plan and coordinate an event such as Solarfest, a solar-powered Reggae concert held each spring. Email Sean Morris to help out
  • Get involved with Green Graduation, an effort to make graduation a zero impact event. Contact Keisha Payson for details.

Converting to Alternative Energy Sources

  • Ladd, a campus house, runs on BioHeat as of 2005. (Read more about BioHeat below!)
  • Starting in September, 2006, cooking oil is being used in the fuel supply, simultaneously disposing of the oil and saving 800 gallons of #2 fuel.
  • The Heating plant now runs on dual fuel; petroleum fuel and natural gas. The possibilities of cogeneration are being investigated.
  • Canola oil is used as an environmentally-friendly, renewable lubricant to run the East and West dorm elevators.
  • Geothermal heating and cooling is used in the East and West dormitories, the recital hall and the museum.
  • The 2006 purchase of a second hybrid car, a Prius, reduces campus fuel usage.
  • A future goal of the College is to use photovoltaic cells to help heat the Greason Pool. The cells would be installed on the roof and could yield up to 130,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity a year, reducing electricity demand from other sources by 7%.

Reducing Energy Demand

  • Shutting down the spare boiler at the College heating plant rather than letting it idle saved $100,000.
  • Heating is started later in the fall and shut down earlier in the spring.
  • Heat was started later in the fall and winter temperature settings were reduced to 68˚F.
  • Heat was shut down earlier in the spring and summer temperature settings were raised from 72˚F to 76˚F.
  • The lights in the Hubbard stacks are on timers, reducing unnecessary energy use in the Main Library.
  • Bowdoin follows a no-idling policy.
  • Compact florescent light bulbs are handed out each fall by Sustainable Bowdoin volunteers to discourage the use of incandescent bulbs.
  • Low flow toilets, faucets and showerheads reduce the energy needed to transport and heat water.

BioHeat

BioHeat burns much cleaner than regular #2 heating oil. It is composed by volume of a 20% biodegradable component such as vegetable oil or animal fat and 80% petroleum fuel. The practicality of BioHeat is being assessed for possible use at multiple locations on campus. Advantages of BioHeat include its higher flash point (the temperature at which the fuel will combust when exposed to a spark or flame) of 300°F compared to 125°F of petroleum. It also has 78% lower CO2 emissions and 50% lower cancer-causing PAH (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon) compound levels than straight petroleum fuel. The fuel itself is less toxic than salt and biodegrades faster than sugar so it's safe to handle, and easy to clean up. Back to top


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