University of New Hampshire
IN-9: Green Laboratories

UNH is the first university in New England to join the Department of Energy’s Smart Labs Accelerator initiative. This initiative invites forward-leaning laboratories to become Smart Labs Accelerator Partners, committing to reducing energy use in labs by at least 20% over the next 10 years and implementing no- or low-cost measures in the shorter term. UNH’s participation in the initiative is an institutional effort. The Energy Office, Office of Environmental Health and Safety, The Sustainability Institute, and University Instrumentation Center serve as the working group for implementing the initiative. The program hopes to do the following: --Improve the processes for introducing energy reduction activities within laboratory buildings at UNH --Share best management practices for implementing energy reduction activities --Develop low to no-cost energy savings projects and practices in support of laboratory personnel --Identify code-related barriers for energy efficiency and recommend change --Promote UNH’s commitment and success in energy reduction activities within laboratory buildings --Educate campus stakeholders on the benefits of implementing energy reduction initiatives in their work areas and buildings To date, the working group has established a charter for the effort, initiated data collection for the University’s five most lab-intensive buildings, proposed baselines to gauge progress, and started identifying and consolidating a list of projects that will impact this baseline. UNH has been in communication with the Department of Energy and is sharing best practices with other institutions as we all work towards reducing lab energy use. In October, UNH will participate in the International Institute for Sustainable Labs (I2SL) conference.