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Conservation Efforts Fuel School Rivalries
Carleton's turbine is "basically a break-even operation" because it sells electricity to a utility company, buying back what it needs, said Fred Rogers, Carleton's vice president and treasurer. The turbine can produce the equivalent of about 40 percent of the school's electricity.
St. Olaf's wind turbine, which covers about a third of its needs, is expected to save as much as $300,000 a year, said Pete Sandberg, St. Olaf's assistant vice president for facilities.
  St. Olaf student Dayna Burtness, co-farmer at The Saint Olaf Garden Research and Organic Works, talks about her bee hives at the garden in Northfield, Minn. on Tuesday, May 23, 2006. Burtness uses the bees to naturally pollinate the garden, which grows pesticide-free food for her school cafeteria. Cafeteria waste then goes to a composter on campus where it is converted to fertilizer. (AP Photo/Robb Long) (Robb Long - AP) Save & Share |
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Sandberg said that while Carleton may be ahead on wind energy, St. Olaf leads in composting. The school's composter, in use since the fall, keeps 3.5 tons of weekly food waste from the area's landfills.
This month, faculty from Carleton and St. Olaf will hold a joint workshop to learn how to incorporate sustainability ideas into their classrooms.
Jim Farrell, who teaches environmental studies at St. Olaf and is co-leading the workshop, said students are already using their own campuses as laboratories.
Pulver, a 21-year-old Carleton senior, wants to convert the 1,000 gallons of vegetable oil the school throws away annually into biodiesel fuel for on-campus vehicles.
He got the idea in Everett's class and started mixing biodiesel in his kitchen. Pulver will pitch the concept to a school planning committee and plans to hand the project off to another student when he graduates.
Burtness, also 21, said a summer internship at an organic farm in Wisconsin inspired her to work with St. Olaf administrators to set up a campus farm last year.
Officials were cool to the idea until the company that runs the school cafeteria said it would buy the produce. It has since bought more than $10,000 worth.
"In higher education, I think a big problem is that students end up thinking it's too cerebral," Burtness said. "The existence of on-campus, real solutions that students can actually get involved with _ I think that's really empowering."
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On the Net:
Sustainability at Carleton College: http:/
Sustainability at St. Olaf College: http:/
Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education: http:/