Ever wanted to do something over the weekend but needed transportation? Ever wonder if the weight room machines could do more than tone? Pacific is working toward making these and much more possible.
The Center for a Sustainable Society hit the ground running this year. In order to increase the university’s Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System score, several projects will be realized by the end of the current academic year.
A partnership with Zipcar can be expected by spring 2013, making Pacific one of five schools in Oregon to offer the by-the-hour rental cars, according to Director of Residence Life Ryan Aiello.
“I felt it was my responsibility to take the project on and provide another system of transportation for students,” Aiello said.
The program would start with two cars situated on campus. Students, faculty and staff can apply and pay a $25 annual fee to have access to vehicles whenever they want for $8-$9 per hour or $66-$72 per day. Zipcar takes care of the gas and maintenance.
“Even if you budget $100 per month, Zipcar would be less than the cost of gas, maintenance and insurance of owning your own car,” said Aiello.
Director of the Center for a Sustainable Society John Hayes expressed hope that with the rentals available, students will opt to not bring cars to campus, alleviating some of the parking congestion on the Forest Grove campus.
The center is also working toward installing solar panels around campus. There are companies with programs where they pay for installation and the receiver’s monthly electrical bills remain the same until the installation fees are paid off, but that process won’t work for campus.
The center is also working toward installing solar panels around campus. There are companies with programs where they pay for installation and the receiver’s monthly electrical bills remain the same until the installation fees are paid off, but that process won’t work for campus.
“Forest Grove has its own electric utility, so it costs less than half of what it would in Portland, which makes the pay-back period very long,” said Hayes. “Companies aren’t content with that time investment, so Pacific would have to foot the bill.”
So far, the Holce Tennis Courts and Knight Hall are the most likely candidates for panels. According to Director of Business Operations for Pharmacy Thomas Andrews, a 12-kilowatt array on Knight Hall is estimated to cost $25,000.
There is currently no concrete plan for panels in Forest Grove, but the Health Professions Campus is already equipped with arrays.
By the end of the year, one or two energy-generating ellipticals are likely to replace older machines in the Stoller Athletic Center weight room.
“Machines in the weight room have a typical lifetime of four to seven years because of the use they experience,” said Athletic Director Ken Schumann, “so we typically replace one or two machines a year.”
The funds for this come from student recreation fees. Schumann said that if there were a price differentice between regular machines and energy-generating machines, more funding would have to be approved.
“Human power doesn’t generate a lot of energy,” said Hayes, “so those machines would be a symbolic display of how serious the university is toward sustainability.”
Hayes also said he hopes new bike racks are installed around campus before the rain starts.
Director of Facilities and Safety Management Harold Roark has been working toward making practices more sustainable for many years.
“I’m really impressed with the work Harold’s done,” said Hayes. “He’s done a huge amount.”
Roark realized that the university was paying $300 each time Waste Management emptied a Dumpster, regardless of whether it was full or not. So he invested in what he calls the Green Environmental Machine, which compacts most of the trash on campus. The GEM is emptied only once every one or two weeks and saves the university more than $60,000 annually.
“It paid for itself in 18 months,” Roark said. “I know it will pay to get one for HPC, too.”
Maintenance also collects cardboard to make half-ton bales that are sold at $10 per ton.
Roark is aware of the criticism the university receives regarding watering during the day. He said that having workers on campus at night is more costly and makes people nervous.
“It’s a trade-off between sustainability and safety,” Roark said.
These are just the simple changes the Center for a Sustainability Society has encouraged Pacific to make. The committee is also working toward establishing longer-term goals with more visible, widespread effects.
The committee is sponsoring a three-part sustainability summit starting Saturday, Oct. 20 at 9 a.m. Those interested in participating can contact Hayes at jhayes@pacificu.edu for more information.
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