The Technion will save millions of shekels on energy consumption after a test carried out in the Faculty of Electrical Engineering succeeded in saving of a quarter of a million shekels. This faculty’s pioneering electricity-saving project involved operating a number of relatively low-cost means and measuring energy consumption before the project began and after. It was found that this single project saved NIS 232,499 in energy expenditures over a period of nine months. The total sum invested in the project was NIS 45,000.
“This result demonstrates the environmental and economic potential of a coordinated operation between environmentalists and engineers,” states Prof. Yoram Avnimelech, one of the heads of the Technion’s “Green Campus” project. “The Technion administration decided to continue in this direction in the coming years. This will save the Technion millions of shekels, will lessen emission of hothouse gases and other pollutants and will demonstrate to students and the general Technion community the importance of appropriate environmental conduct. Representatives of other universities are coming to the Technion in order to learn from the Green Campus project with the intention of implementing it in other institutions.”
The Technion started the Green Campus project eight years ago. Within its framework, the Technion operates as a community that maintains environmental procedures and develops means to improve the environment. “We believe that actions speak louder than words,” says Prof. Avnimelech. “The Green Campus at the Technion was the first project of its kind in an academic setting in Israel.”
The Green Campus constitutes a super framework in which all Technion units take part. This includes the Neaman Institute, all academic and administrative units and the students, who are central link in the project’s operations. Every year, the Student Union chooses a green coordinator who is responsible for student environmental activities and is a member of the Green Campus council. In addition, the Student Union appoints environmental coordinators in every academic unit.
For a number of years, the Building and Maintenance Division has been involved in environmental planning and construction at the Technion. An example of one of its many activities is the Rabin Building, which has a cooling system that stores cold (ice) during the night when temperatures are low and cheap electricity is available. The ice is accumulated and stored in the basement and used for cooling in the middle of the day. In addition, water condensed from the air conditioning in the Computer Engineering building is saved and used to irrigate the Technion’s main lawn.
In the framework of Green Campus activities, most paper is recycled. Moreover, distributing and saving material on the Internet and other electronic media instead of on paper has also greatly reduced paper use. Another Green Campus activity is lectures on environmental topics for the Technion community and the general public in Haifa.
Five years ago, an energy-saving plan was begun in the Technion’s Faculty of Agricultural Engineering. By taking care to turn off unnecessary lights and air conditioners and operating them only during the hours needed, a culture of energy saving was created. It is estimated that this has saved 15% in electricity consumption. The Technion received a certificate from the Minister of Environmental Protection, Gideon Ezra, which says that the Technion meets the Ministry’s requirements for a green campus. This certificate was transferred last week for safekeeping to Technion President, Prof. Yitzhak Apeloig, in the hope that the Technion will continue its environmental activities as well as its leadership in this field. |