Green Projects Boost UC San Diego as National Sustainability Leader
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Marye Anne Fox, Chancellor of UC San Diego
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Tony Haymet, Director of Scripps Institution of Oceanography
Paul Linden, Director, Environmental & Sustainability Initiative
Gary Matthews, Vice Chancellor of Resource Management
Steve Kay, Dean of Biological Sciences
Melanie Zauscher, Graduate Student
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UC San Diego will soon generate 10-15 percent of its annual electrical needs with alternative generating capacity, highlighting a wide range of collaborative efforts by faculty, students and administration to create a campus dedicated to environmental sustainability.
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UC San Diego signed a contract in March to build 1 megawatt of photovoltaic (PV) solar energy production. The solar arrays will be constructed atop campus buildings and parking structures. UC San Diego expects to install another 1 megawatt of PV capacity within the next year.
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The university is preparing to purchase up to 3 megawatts of electrical power produced by Southern California wind farms.
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UC San Diego will produce 2.4 megawatts from fuel cells powered by methane from the Point Loma sewage treatment plant. Methane, currently flared from the plant, will instead be transported to UC San Diego.
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Once completed, the approximately 7.4 megawatts of renewable energy capacity will make UC San Diego the leader in renewable energy solutions among U.S. universities.
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“These remarkable achievements in renewable energy demonstrate UC San Diego’s local impact, national influence and global reach in one of the most important issues of our time – environmental sustainability,” said UC San Diego Chancellor Marye Anne Fox. “Universities are the leaders of innovation in green research and practices, and UC San Diego stands out among all other institutions.”
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UC San Diego has negotiated agreements with investors that allow the investors to install PV systems on campus rooftops, and the university will purchase the energy produced at a negotiated price. The fuel cell electricity generators will be built and operated with similar third-party funding.
April 3, 2008
UC San Diego's Campus-wide Initiatives
- Through global thinking and interdisciplinary collaboration, UC San Diego has emerged as an international leader conducting cutting-edge environmental research in ocean and earth sciences, engineering, biological, health and atmospheric sciences, economic and public policy, and information technology. As stewards of our campus community, we feel compelled to address environmental challenges and implement innovative sustainable solutions through education, research, and service with the future in mind. More.
- UC San Diego takes a comprehensive approach toward creating a green campus that includes planning, design and construction, and operations and maintenance of facilities. The Green Campus Overview provides contacts, energy conservation programs, PowerPoint presentations, publications, recycling information, and much more.
Student Initiatives
- The Earthguide Educational Web is an interactive educational resource that explores the science and nature of the Earth, its oceans and our environment. Research
UC San Diego's Center for Atmospheric Sciences conducts fundamental investigations of the atmosphere related to climate and climate change.
Video: Turning food crops into fuel won’t quench our thirst for fossil fuels. UC San Diego’s innovative, interdisciplinary research efforts are focused on discovering new sources of biofuels.
Video: Mario Molina,
Video: Scientists discuss global warming and the prospects of a hydrogen economy.
California researchers plan to make biofuels in a novel way that doesn’t involve food crops or microbial fermentation. More.
The Center for Clouds, Chemistry & Climate integrates observations and field-tested hypotheses with models used for climate predictions. Its scientists identify gaps in current observing systems, fill the gaps with new data, and integrate the information into global observing systems and modeling activities.
Courses related to sustainability and the environment
US San Diego courses related to sustainability and the environment: Anthropology, Biological Sciences, Chemistry and Biochemistry, Communication,
Earth Sciences, Economics, Jacobs School of Engineering: Environment and Sustainability Courses, Environmental Studies, Environmental Studies Minor, Environmental Systems Program, Environmental Systems, Ethnic Studies, History, Graduate School of International Relations and Pacific Studies (IR/ PS), International Studies, Jacobs School of Engineering, Literature, School of Medicine, Philosophy, Physics, Political Science, Psychology, Rady School of Management, Science, Technology, and Public Affairs, Scripps Institution of Oceanography (SIO), SIO graduate programs, SIO undergraduate programs, Sociology, Urban Studies and Planning, Visual Arts
Green Practices
Energy Conservation for Staff and Faculty
LIGHTING
Turn off unnecessary lighting.
Rely on low-wattage task lighting or daylight when possible.
Install motion sensors in common areas.
More.
OFFICE PRACTICES
Set thermostats to 78 degrees on hot days and 68 degrees on cold days.
Dress comfortably for the weather; adjust your layers before adjusting the thermostat.
More.
LABS
Keep fume hood sashes closed whenever possible.
Turn off air valves.
Fill autoclaves before use.
More.
HOME
Open refrigerators and freezers only when necessary.
Postpone using washers, dryers, and dishwashers until after 7 p.m.
More.
Communicate your ideas for reducing electric load to the campus energy manager, (858) 822-2807.
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Energy Management
UCSD's cogeneration facility supplies 88 percent of the campus's electricity.
The plant uses natural gas to produce electricity and heat. State-of–the-art turbines equipped with pollution controls are 45-50 percent more efficient than conventional natural gas power plants and produce 75 percent fewer emissions.
Learn more.
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Sustainable Building Program and Design Practices
- Training Facilities Design & Construction and Facilities Management project managers as LEED-accredited design professionals.
- Incorporating sustainable design costs into project budgets.
- organizations submitting bid proposals to demonstrate expertise in sustainable building practices.
- Awarding contracts to experienced sustainability design professionals.
- Adopting an integrated design approach including eco-charette.
- More
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Sustainable Building Design and Construction
New buildings will:
- Outperform Title 24 (state building code requirements for minimum energy efficiency levels) by 20 percent.
- Meet or exceed LEED (Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design) 2.1 "Certified" equivalent rating or Labs21 (Labs for the 21st century) criteria.
- Be planned and designed focusing on lifecycle cost and long-term operation and maintenance.
Existing buildings will be evaluated by Facilities Management according to LEED 2.1 criteria.
New equipment and systems will be strategically purchased for maximum efficiency.
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Commuting Alternatives
UCSD Ride-Matching Service
How to Participate in a Carpool
- How to Participate in the Flexcar Program
- How to Participate in the Pedal Club
- How to Participate in the Transit/ Coaster Club
- How to Participate in a Vanpool
- Vanpool Routes, Times, and Monthly Fees
- Get a Bus Sticker and Ride for Free
- Shuttle and Bus Service
- MTS service at UCSD, Medical Center La Jolla, VA Hospital
- Metropolitan Transit System (MTS)
- North County Transit District
- San Diego Trolley Coaster train
- Sorrento Valley Coaster Connection shuttle
- Amtrak
- OTIS: Online trip planner offered by MTS
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Sustainable Vehicle Use and Maintenance
UC San Diego is reducing its reliance on conventional, gas-powered vehicles and
capitalizing on new technology to build a more sustainable fleet through the following efforts: In 2004, Vehicle Services replaced several older vehicles with the fuel-efficient hybrid Toyota Prius. Transportation & Parking Services' Shuttle Operations operates four compressed natural gas buses and is researching the use of hybrid buses. Shuttle Operations also uses cleaner-burning, ultra-low-sulfur diesel fuel in its shuttles.
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Triton Bikes Program
The program transforms abandoned bikes into a convenient, cost-effective campus
transportation alternative in several ways:
- Encourages the use of alternative transportation
- Provides a reliable, inexpensive means of transportation to students, faculty, and staff
- Recycles usable bikes, keeping them out of the waste stream
- Promotes campus community
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Reclaimed water on campus
UC San Diego uses approximately 366,203 gallons of water daily for irrigation, 120,165 gallons of which is reclaimed water. The university saves approximately 45 precent of the cost of water and sewer services when compared to the cost of using all potable water for campus irrigation.
News clippings
Keelings' half-century of CO² measurements serves as global warming's longest yardstick
Fifty years ago this month, geochemist Charles David Keeling began recording the curve of the Earth. Few scientific studies have had a bigger impact, and not just on people in white lab coats. Like the carbon dioxide Keeling studied, the results of his research have circled the globe.
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Soot in the Greenhouse, and Kitchen
The conversation around climate largely focuses on carbon dioxide. But there’s another emission from human activities that would be easier to curb in the short run – and that also contributes to enormous conventional pollution problems as well as the warming of the climate. It's good old-fashioned black carbon soot.
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Addressing Challenges and Benefits of Going ‘Green’ in Business
We're all doing our part to take care of the environment…we're supposed to, anyway. While the individual is important, businesses can make a much bigger dent in global climate change. What can businesses to do be more environmentally conscientious? And at what cost to the company's bottom line?
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Smog's Origins Get Clearer: A key chemical reaction helps form ozone haze
Scientists say they've identified a chemical reaction that's an important contributor to smog.
This chemical reaction -- which involves reactions between water vapor and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) in "excited" states -- was long assumed to be unimportant.
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Hype or a real solution?
With gas prices approaching $4 a gallon and industries searching for new ways to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, biofuels – fuels such as ethanol derived from corn and other plant sources rather than petroleum – are becoming an increasingly attractive option to help mitigate the impacts of climate change and reduce our oil imports.
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Running Dry
Climate research says Lake Mead, in the Southwest, could be gone by 2021.
