Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 53.15
Liaison Paul Scanlon
Submission Date Feb. 29, 2016
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.0

Slippery Rock University
OP-9: Clean and Renewable Energy

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 0.36 / 4.00 Paul Scanlon
Special Assistant to the President
President's Office/Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Total energy consumption (all sources, transportation fuels excluded), performance year:
283,161 MMBtu

Clean and renewable energy from the following sources::
Performance Year
Option 1: Clean and renewable electricity generated on-site during the performance year and for which the institution retains or has retired the associated environmental attributes 17.50 MMBtu
Option 2: Non-electric renewable energy generated on-site 18 MMBtu
Option 3: Clean and renewable electricity generated by off-site projects that the institution catalyzed and for which the institution retains or has retired the associated environmental attributes 0 MMBtu
Option 4: Purchased third-party certified RECs and similar renewable energy products (including renewable electricity purchased through a certified green power purchasing option) 25,590 MMBtu

A brief description of on-site renewable electricity generating devices :

Grid-tied PV system:
The grid-tied PV system at the Macoskey Center is located southeast of Harmony House. The 2.4 kW PV array is constructed from 20 Evergreen Solar EC120 12v PV modules and uses a Sunny Boy 2500U PV 240V AC Intertie Inverter.
The array faces south and collects direct sunlight. The angle of the array is adjusted seasonally for maximum solar absorption.

This system is tied into the local utility company via a net metering system. If the system generates more power than the house is using at any given time, it feeds back into the utility grid and the Center is credited for it (the meter turns backwards). Conversely, if the house load is greater than what the PV system is generating, we can draw power from the grid.Additional small PV systems power a rainwater collection system and pumps used in an aquaponics research project, but the electric output of these systems is not monitored or included in our renewable energy reporting.
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Wind Turbine System:
The wind turbine system at the Macoskey Center is located on the ridge behind the Market Garden, to the east of Harmony House. The turbine is part of a grid-intertied system, which provides an emissions-free source of electricity for Harmony House.
Feasibility and siting of the system was based on a one-year study of wind speed and direction, carried out by an SRU graduate student. The reduction in on-site renewable energy reported this year is due to the wind turbine being out of commission for the past year.


A brief description of on-site renewable non-electric energy devices:

150 gallons of renewable biodiesel fuel is produced each year from used cooking oil and use to fuel tractors and/or other grounds maintenance equipment. Waste wood from campus operations is also collected and used for supplemental heating of the Harmony House at the Macoskey Center for Sustainable Systems Education and Research.


A brief description of off-site, institution-catalyzed, renewable electricity generating devices:

NA


A brief description of the RECs and/or similar renewable energy products:

Slippery Rock University participated in a state system of higher education elecricity procurement process that purchased approximately 15% renewable energy through the FY11. This state system program was discontinued in 2012, but SRU has continued purchasing approximately 25% of its electricity from certified-renewable sources; 7,500,000 kWh of renewable energy RECs have been purchased each year from FY 2012 through FY 2015.


The website URL where information about the institution's renewable energy sources is available:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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