Notes on Oberlin College and Green Power

The carbon budget for OC:

·  According to the Rocky Mountain Institute’s “2020” report, in 2000, Oberlin College produced a total of 50,000 tons of CO2 equivalents. Divided by the student population, this works out to 17 tons of CO2 per OC student per year.

·  Electricity consumption on campus is responsible for 47% of total CO2 production and the coal fired central heating plant is responsible for 29%.

Supply and demand side approaches to reducing emissions:

·  Examples of demand side: Install energy efficient equipment, institute policies that increase efficiency of use, modify behavior to reduce energy use.

·  Examples of supply side: Purchase “green” energy and products that minimizes CO2 released per unit product delivered.

·  Both approaches are essential to a comprehensive strategy

“Green” electricity:

·  Refers to electricity that is produced in ways that minimize environmental damage. Sources of green energy include renewables such as solar, wind, hydroelectric, wave, tides biomass, as well as salvaged resources, such as landfill gas.

·  Since the electricity grid is completely interconnected, there is no way to know for sure where the power coming off the grid is generated. People who arrange to purchase 100 kWh of green power from a utility are really paying to have 100 kWh of green energy delivered onto the grid, not to their house.

·  Customers of companies like Green Mountain Power that broker green energy pay a premium for “green power”. This power is green because Green Mountain either owns or purchases green attributes for each unit of electricity it sells.

·  “Green attributes” or “green tags” are a popular means of marketing green power. In a green tag sale, the power from a green source is not physically delivered to the customer, but the environmental benefits are attributed to the customer, directly offsetting the environmental impact of the customer’s conventional energy use.

·  A number of organizations certify the quality and legitimacy of green power. For example, the “Green-e” renewable electricity certification program verifies that electricity meets environmental standards and is only being claimed by one purchaser.

Where our electricity comes from:

·  Oberlin College’s electricity comes from a publicly owned utility, “Oberlin Municipal Light and Power”. The utility is charged with the task of delivering reliable power at a good price.

·  OMLPS has a small, gas fired power plant within the city, but bulk of OMLPS’ electricity is derived from coal fired power plants. Coal is the worst fossil fuel in terms of both CO2 released per unit of electricity generated (three times that of natural gas) and in terms of health effects (30,000 premature deaths in US each year)

·  Two of OMLPS’ sources could be considered “green”. 7% comes from a long-term contract with a facility that recovers natural gas from the BFI landfill. 10% comes from a hydroelectric plant that we own a share of. But here’s the kicker, for the past several years, OMPLS has sold the “green attributes” associated with these facilities to Green Mountain Power. Since we sold them, we can’t claim them as part of our mix. The net result is that Oberlin’s electricity is > 90% coal fired. The money from the sale of these green attributes is returned to OMLPS consumers in the form of slightly lower bills. Both of these green energy sources have recently been green-e certified, this adds to their value (cost to us).

The proposal:

·  “That Oberlin College purchase all of the currently available “green” energy available through Oberlin Municipal Light and Power (OMLPS) starting in this year of 2003. OMLPS has approximately 13,000 mWh of green power which, if purchased, would meet 60% of the College’s electricity needs and would cost the College $25,700 per year over what we are currently paying for electricity. This action will be financed by specific energy conservation measures as yet to be determined, but to be implemented within the next year.”

·  We would pay a premium of $2 per mWh above the $70 per mWh that we currently pay (a cost increase of 3%).

·  Steve Dupee (CFO of OMLPS) and members of the Oberlin City Council have suggested that they would be willing to use the $25,700 that they receive from the sale to establish a, “Sustainable Energy Reserve Fund”. This fund would sponsor energy/climate saving investments. Options for use that have been discussed include sponsoring insulation of low-income housing in Oberlin, sponsoring tree planting in Oberlin, and wind-power development projects in NE Ohio. OMLPS and the City have indicated that Oberlin College would be granted some say in how this money is spent

·  Most Colleges that have committed to purchasing green power have done it through energy brokers that have spent the money on projects located outside of the local community, and not tied green purchasing directly with local energy efficiency measures. The EPAC proposal is distinct.

Possible benefits:

1)  Shifting from the current electrical mix on the grid to green power significantly reduces Oberlin College’s contribution to greenhouse gas emissions.

2)  Purchasing green power from OMLPS compels “Green Mountain Power” to meet their energy needs through other sources, thereby expanding the market for green power.

3)  Through the proposed “Sustainable Reserve Fund” OMLPS will encourage further development of green power.

4)  Through the Sustainable Reserve Fund OMLPS will weatherize low income houses, decreasing energy use and allowing low income residents to shift financial resources from energy to other needs. The link between environmental conservation and local economic development provide through a weatherization program would be a major plus for an institution that seeks to affirm its commitment to both issues.

5)  The policy provides education opportunities associated with selection and implementation of energy conservation measures. Students and faculty will be encouraged to change behavior in a way that saves energy. The proposal also stimulates thought and discussion on environmental issues.

6)  Decreased energy use achieved through these conservation measures will reduce Oberlin’s greenhouse gas emissions as well as other negative environmental and health effects associated with energy consumption.

Late breaking news:

·  The hydro and landfill gas resources that OMLPS has in its portfolio have been “green-e” certified (check out http://www.green-e.org/what_is/what_is_index.html if you want an explanation of what this means). This means that the green attributes associated with these are actually now more valuable.
·  OMLPS, working with Amp Ohio and Green Mountain Power will start a program to sell “green” power to all Oberlin consumers. This will occur regardless of what the college decides to do. The tags associated with this purchase will be $13/mWhr. This is considerably more than the $2/mWhr that we discussed purchasing green attributes for, but the cost will be explained in the point below.
·  OMLPS, working with Amp Ohio and Green Mountain Power will be investing in the wind turbines that will go in at Bowling Green. OMLPS will own a fraction of the power generated from these. This is a case where willing consumers will pay the real cost of generating this wind power, so the power will be relatively expensive (hence the much larger tag cost described above). Oberlin consumers who decide to purchase green power will be paying for a mixture of the landfill gas and the wind, but not the hydro.
·  Obviously, this news has some bearing on the College’s options for purchasing green power from OMLPS. Some aspects of our proposal are basically unchanged -- Since the hydro power will not be included in the power mix that is marketed to the public, I believe that the College still has the option to purchase this. And I think the price would be close to what we discussed before. Steve Dupee of OMLPS says there is also still the option of setting up the renewable energy reserve fund with the money we spend on this. What is different is that there may be some options for us to participate in the wind power.