Sustainability Goals and Initiatives | University of Minnesota Morris

Sustainability Goals and Initiatives | University of Minnesota Morris
Sustainability Goals and Initiatives
Wind, soil, and sun make an ideal laboratory for new ideas in sustainability.
As a rural liberal arts school “in the middle of everywhere,” UMN Morris is blessed with
abundant wind
rich soil
, and
ample sun
. We are at the intersection of diverse
ecological prairie and forest regions
which makes our location an ideal laboratory for new ideas in sustainability. It's a place for students, faculty, staff, and community members to collaborate and develop a model for sustainability leadership.
The Morris campus has a broad array of initiatives devoted to sustainability. Among our
areas of focus
are renewable energy, zero waste, and sustainable construction and renovation, but our efforts extend to almost every field of our operations.
Our specific goals and initiatives
Expand all
Zero Waste
What does zero waste mean?
Zero waste is a goal that guides people to change their lifestyles and practices so they emulate sustainable natural cycles, where all discarded materials are designed to become resources for others to use. This goal requires designing and managing products and processes to systematically avoid and eliminate the volume and toxicity of our waste materials. At the University of Minnesota Morris, we have been working to rethink our relationship with waste to reduce the amount that is generated by our campus. We will achieve this goal through:
conservation
reuse
reclaiming and recycling
education
Compost
A majority of our waste comes from organics and product packaging.
Since 2012
we have worked with Sodexo, our dining service provider, to transition to biodegradable packaging and began to collect both their serving items plus leftover food scraps for
cold-weather composting
Morris students developed cold-weather composting in partnership with Facilities Management, Sodexo staff, and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency.
Local and Sustainable Food
Eating locally supports your community and provides fresh, nutritious food for you. We can all play a role in helping to improve the long-term sustainability of our food system by learning more about how our food choices affect the environment.
The Morris campus is a founding member of the Pride of the Prairie, one of the longest-running local food efforts in Minnesota higher education, which promotes local use of foods grown in west central Minnesota.
Our campus food service provider is contracted to purchase from area farmers and demonstrates the preparation of locally produced foods at the annual West Central Research and Outreach Center Horticulture Night.
Twice a year the campus hosts a Pride of the Prairie Food Expo and Farmers Market along with a community meal featuring locally and organically grown foods.
Morris Healthy Eating
The Morris Healthy Eating project, funded by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota, is working to expand the consumption of fresh vegetables and fruits on campus, within the city of Morris, and in Stevens County. Students provide support for local farmer’s markets, maintain an organic garden, and promote healthy food choices.
The
Office of Student Affairs
leads the
Morris Healthy Eating project
Renewable Energy
In 2019, UMN Morris was ranked as the
#1 campus in the United States
for most renewable electricity generated on campus per full-time equivalent (FTE) student by Environment America.
The top Five Schools for Renewable Electricity Generated on Campus Per Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) Student
Rank
School
State
Electricity per FTE Student (MMBtu)
University of Minnesota, Morris
MN
10.0
University of Missouri
MO
7.7
Carelton College
MN
6.9
Skidmore College
NY
3.3
Sterling College
VT
3.1
(Enivronment America’s 2019 Report  “America’s Top Colleges for Renewable Energy”)
Morris is a
unique
location. A
diverse and distributed renewable energy platform
is a key part of our plans to achieve
carbon neutrality
. Within a mile of our campus you will find a biomass gasification facility, solar thermal and photovoltaic installations, green buildings, and conservation technologies, all of which contribute to our community goals to reduce our carbon footprint.
On average, about
70% of electricity
used on campus
daily
is generated by renewables. But
annually
, we produce
more electricity than we need
. Here’s how it works.
Wind Turbines
Two wind turbines tower above the Pomme de Terre River and may be the first thing you see as you arrive on campus. Some days, the turbines produce more electricity than we need. When this occurs, the excess is sold to the local power provider,
reducing the amount of fossil fuels they use to service homes, schools, and businesses
The University of Minnesota West Central Research and Outreach Center, our neighbor across the street, erected the
first commercial-scale research wind turbine at a United States public university
in 2005.
The turbines generate more than
10 million kWh
of electricity per year.
The turbine towers are about
230 feet high
; each has three
135-foot blades
The turbines can produce electricity at
wind speeds
as low as 7.8 mph. Maximum electricity output occurs at 29 mph wind speeds.
In the near future, UMN Morris hopes to invest in
large-scale energy storage
to increase the amount of electricity from the wind turbines that can be used directly on campus.
Biomass Gasification Facility
The UMN Morris biomass gasification facility displaces fossil fuels with locally obtained and grown biomass, like corn cobs. The gasifier currently provides a significant portion of campus heating and cooling needs.
The gasifier can consume about
9,000 tons
of corn residue and prairie grass biofuels per year, harvested from farms within a 60-mile radius of Morris.
It can gasify a variety of agricultural fuels including wood, perennial grasses, and
crop residues
It displaces
8,000 tons of CO
emissions per year.
The gasification plant can generate
19 million BTUs
of heat energy per hour.
Fuel purchases for the gasifier put around
$500,000
into the local economy annually.
Solar Arrays
There are
multiple solar arrays
at UMN Morris.
Outside of the
Green Prairie Community
residence hall is a 20 kW array that generates around 20% of the building’s energy needs during the summer.
A solar thermal array, made from locally produced panels, heats the recreational pool at the
Regional Fitness Center
. The 32 flat panels prevent about
15 tons of CO
from entering the atmosphere annually.
Behind the
Science Building
, half the solar arrays of the 3kW photovoltaic demonstration
track the sun
while the other 50% are fixed.
The campus plans to purchase more solar arrays in the near future.
Sustainability Facilities and Investments
Conservation
Conservation is how sustainability at UMN Morris began. In 2001, when students requested the campus purchase wind energy to reduce carbon emissions, the administration asked the students to find ways to cover the added costs through conservation. They started with reduced power & water usage plus increased campus recycling. That was only the beginning.
Fleet vehicles
We are in the process of switching our entire fleet of campus cars away from vehicles powered solely by fossil fuels. With the addition of a
fully electric vehicle
and numerous electric
hybrid vehicles
that use less gasoline and emit fewer greenhouse gases, we have decreased emissions by more than
21 tons of CO
per year. In April 2019, the campus added a fully
electric commercial lawn mower
to its fleet.
Water
We placed flow restrictors on bathroom faucets and showers, installed low-flow toilets, and automated our urinal flushers. We also recycle water from our steam plant. Campus water use has been reduced by
two million gallons each year
Light and heat
We continue to invest money into energy-saving retrofits to our buildings by switching conventional lights for energy-saving LED lights or compact fluorescent bulbs. We also installed programmable temperature controls to reduce power usage. The improvements generate
several hundred thousand dollars
of savings a year and have paid for themselves via an innovative financing arrangement with McKinstry, an engineering and energy services firm.
Electricity
UMN Morris students led
the effort to install VendingMisers® on refrigerated vending machines. The devices automatically power down the machines when they are not in active use, cutting energy consumption by
more than 40 percent
Construction and renovation
In construction,
reusing existing structures and reclaiming materials
are some of the best ways to reduce consumption of resources and cut emissions. Per a
student-led initiative
, all future construction and renovations will adhere to Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design
(LEED) standards
Renovation
The Community Services Building, originally an engineering structure built in 1915, is on the National Register of Historic Places. When the campus needed to renovate it to create the
Welcome Center
, we decided to bring it up to 21st century environmental standards while preserving its links to our heritage.
The new structure earned a LEED Gold rating.
It is one of the most energy-efficient structures in Minnesota and is the
first building in the state
––as well as the
first listed on the National Register of Historic Places
—to use
chilled-beam technology
Its interior features wood reclaimed from exterior demolition.
Motion sensors and dimmable light fixtures cut power use.
Placement and design features provide ample sunlight and passive solar benefits.
Upon completion, the Welcome Center received the 2011 Minnesota Construction Association Award.
Housing
Opened in fall 2013, the LEED-Gold certified Green Prairie Community is an
innovative living and learning environment
that complements UMN Morris’s focus on
environmental sustainability
. Environmentally-friendly features include:
Real-time energy monitoring system, which helps residents use power wisely
High thermal mass insulated concrete forms for superior insulation
Low VOC interior finishes and furnishings for improved air quality
Site placement and building design that provides daylight in all public and residential spaces and enhance green design features and links to the prairie ecosystem
Orchard, edible landscaping, and gardens
Low-flow water fixtures
Power, heat, and cooling from campus renewable energy sources
Abundant bike racks
Residence programs on sustainability issues
Community meals prepared with food produced onsite and locally
Investments
The Morris campus has made
considerable investments in sustainability
, which are providing immediate savings and environmental benefits. In addition, we will continue to
save money
as a result of these investments while reducing our carbon footprint. Significant portions of these investments go directly to the local economy,
supporting farmers and small businesses
in the region.
Over $2.6 million invested in energy conservation and
retrofits
for the campus, facilities, and operations, which helped us reduce electricity consumption by 1 million kWh between 2007 and 2012
$4 million invested in our
second wind turbine
, greatly increasing the amount of power we get from renewable energy
Approximately $9 million invested on the
biomass gasification plant
, which included about $3 million in federal and other grant funding
$1.4 million invested in capital equipment to further improve the performance of our systems, like the
absorption chiller
and the steam turbine on the biomass plant
Over $500,000 in biomass purchases from the
farming community
annually, displacing significant carbon emissions
Investments to build the new Green Prairie residence hall that will
yield energy savings for decades
A solar thermal system that lowers emissions by approximately
fifteen tons of carbon per year
, purchased locally and funded in part by grants and an anonymous donor
Maintenance
Landscape
We employ many green best practices. Examples include
storm water gardens
, wetlands,
jewel box greenhouses
, low-maintenance native plants, pedestrian-friendly roadways, and an organic vegetable garden.
Campus maintenance crews use eco-friendly cleaners and recycled paper products whenever possible.
The EcoStation
Thanks to the vision of generous donors
, the University of Minnesota Morris has the opportunity to create an environment where students will play a pivotal role in solving the problems facing our world.
Graced with ponds and prairie grasses, forest and farmland, these 140 acres outside Ashby, Minnesota, are more than mere wide, open space—they are the ideal setting for undergraduate students and scholars.
The EcoStation expands and complements the sustainability learning laboratory that has developed on the Morris campus and is already making possible an array of education, research, and creative activities on site—in fields as diverse as biology and creative writing.
Learn More about the EcoStation
Sustainable Academics & Coursework
At UMN Morris the goal is to study widely, work across disciplines, and step back to look at the big picture. Sustainability is woven into the fabric of our academics. From dedicated courses and programs focused on the environment and sustainability to sustainability themes and ideas being incorporated throughout our disciplines, Morris has a strong commitment to leadership in sustainable academics and ongoing expansion of our work and offerings in this important field.
Learn more about Sustainable Academics & Coursework
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