Student funding commitment will generate $3.4 million towards “Zero Net Energy”

Buoyed by the highest voter turnout ever recorded, students at the University of California, Santa Barbara, took an unprecedented step last week when they approved the “Student Services Renewable Energy Initiative.” The revenue generated by this fee increase will be used to fund large-scale renewable energy projects at the seaside campus. Proposed projects include:

1) Photovoltaic array on the top deck of Parking Structure 22
2) Photovoltaic array on the roof of the Student Resource Building
3) Solar pre-heat of water for the Recreation Center Aquatic Complex
4) Ground loop heat pump installed under the Robertson Gym Recreation Fields

This fee increase of $6 per quarter will generate upwards of $3.4 million dollars by the time it sunsets in 2020. According to information from the American Association of Sustainability in Higher Education, the “Student Services Renewable Energy Initiative” will surpass all other U.S. colleges and universities in the amount of funding generated annually for the creation of on-site renewable energy.

That this initiative was passed in the face of another large fee increase beginning this fall at University of California reflects the commitment that UCSB students have historically had to sustainability. UCSB was the first campus to establish an Environmental Studies Department (which just celebrated its 40th anniversary).

With the University of California facing system-wide severe budgetary problems and increasing fees, students recognized that it was incumbent upon them to spearhead the campaign.  Michael Hewitt, UCSB’s Green Campus Program Team Manager and one of the student organizers of the initiative said this is the most opportune time to showcase the campus’s efforts in green technology, as well as save money to offset cuts to essential student services.  “Now is the best time to show where we stand as students,” Hewitt said. “UCSB is once again at the forefront of the environmental movement.”

The success of the initiative will also complement the Division of Student Affairs’ strategic goal of achieving Zero Net Energy for its portfolio of buildings (over 400,000 square feet). The goal of Zero Net Energy is to combine the creation of on-site renewable energy with an aggressive campaign to reduce energy use, thus leading to an elimination of utility costs for electricity and natural gas. The elimination of utility bills can help offset potential reductions in funding for student services. “Our goals are twofold.  Students are concerned for our planet’s future and the present UC budget crisis…” described Clayton Carlson, a 4th year student and the Associated Students External Vice President for Local Affairs “ … but no one ever said sustainability has to come at the cost of services that benefit students. In fact, our initiative proves quite the opposite.”  

The Zero Net Energy campaign originated as a collaborative effort between the Alliance to Save Energy’s Green Campus Program and the Division of Student Affairs at UCSB. The goal is to increase energy efficiency in all of UCSB’s student- fee funded buildings through retrofits, then to meet the remaining, reduced energy needs through on-site generation of clean, renewable energy. This relatively new model has not been attempted on a scale as large as that which UCSB is pursuing. Zero Net Energy will enable UCSB’s Division of Student Affairs to redirect the annual $1 million utility bill to services and programs that promote student success. As such, Zero Net Energy responds to students’ demands that today’s institutions be educationally, fiscally, and environmentally responsible.

For more information please visit our website: http://www.sa.ucsb.edu/sustainability