Letters to the Editor

To the Editor, The Pitt News:

This letter responds to “Pitt wasting its potential,” by… To the Editor, The Pitt News:

This letter responds to “Pitt wasting its potential,” by Andy Satchwell and Clare Sierawski, The Pitt News, Feb. 20. Last year my staff and I met with a representative from Community Energy (the local representative for New Wind Energy Inc.), and we found out the following:

The cost of wind energy promoted by NWE is 25 percent higher than the cost of regular electricity. If Pitt were to buy 5 percent of the electricity we consume from NWE, it would cost us an additional $ 200,000 a year – equivalent to the tuition from 23 students.

NWE is a for-profit company that is promoting the sale of wind energy mainly to universities in exchange for a well-orchestrated media campaign to categorize them as “environmentally friendly” institutions.

About 60 percent of the fee charged by NWE would go to Exelon, a for-profit electricity company that is by far the nation’s largest generator of electricity from nuclear power plants.

Facilities Management believes that developing “clean” sources of energy is a very worthwhile concept, but as a nonprofit organization, the University shouldn’t be losing money to promote a for-profit nuclear power provider.

In the last seven years, the University of Pittsburgh has moved very aggressively to adopt sustainable practices; among other things, Pitt:

-Invested $ 6.5 million in energy-saving projects that have a payback in energy savings of five years or less;

-Is building a new $ 22 million steam plant using the latest emissions-control technology. When finished, it will eliminate the need for the Bellefield Boiler Plant Consortium to burn coal to heat buildings in Oakland;

-Adopted use of construction standards that promote conservation in all Pitt construction and renovation projects, such as energy-saving lighting fixtures, fume hoods, and controls; carpet made from recycled materials; and heat recovery in ventilation systems;

-Promotes energy savings with campaigns like “Sleepnow” for computers and newspaper ads encouraging Pitt people to save energy;

-Purchases “Green Power” electricity generated from landfill gases for the McGowan Center Building; and

-Twice won the Allegheny County Three Star Award for recycling and, in the last year alone, recycled 360 tons of paper, 17 tons of aluminum, 180 tons of corrugated cardboard and 36 tons of glass and plastic.

We will be glad to meet with Mr. Satchwell and Ms. Sierawski to review the numerous environmental initiatives that make Pitt a leader in this field.

Sincerely,

Ana M. Guzman AIA

Associate Vice Chancellor, Facilities Management