Harnessing the Sun and Wind to Save Energy, Money

Officials gathered on the campus of Kansas State Polytechnic in Salina Wednesday afternoon to celebrate, and to highlight the University’s commitment to saving energy.

According to Dean Verna Fitzsimmons, a recent study looked across the entire campus in Salina on how energy and water are being used. Out of that study came a number of recommendations to improve the campus.

Dean Fitzsimmons said that they have had significant reductions in energy use, and at the same time they have started to generate a portion of their own power.

Dean Fitzsimmons spoke in front of a couple of the most visible components of the renewable energy effort, a couple of banks of solar panels and a wind turbine.

Interim Facilities Director Dave Shelton also spoke. He said that the Salina campus is drastically reducing its carbon footprint, and at the same time saving hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Shelton said that the school has reduced its energy load by about a million kilowatt hours a year. They have reduced their water demand by about half a million gallons a year. And they have reduced their demand for gas by about half a million cubic feet a year.

At the same time there are these reductions on the demand side, the new solar panels and wind turbine generate about 32 kilowatts of power combined. “This is significant,” he concluded.

Fitzsimmons estimated that they are going to see about $146,000 a year in energy savings.

The celebration on Wednesday included a ribbon cutting in front of the solar panels and wind turbine on the lawn south of the Student Life Center.