From New Boilers to Lightbulbs,
Smith Lessens Its Environmental Impact
Smith College continues to shape its sustainability
efforts, developing data and cost analyses for numerous projects that will promote
the 30 percent reduction in energy use already achieved. Those efforts range from
the simple to the complex.
Consider the hundreds of unobtrusive
red exit lights in public buildings throughout the Smith campus. In their 25-year
lifetime, the old-style fixtures each burn up 432 lightbulbs and cost $1,100 to operate.
Smith is now converting all exit lights to LED (light emitting diode) signs, which
use no bulbs and cost about $8 each to run over the same lifetime.
of materials in renovation or new construction projects is another important change.
Installing the new cogeneration turbine power facility required deconstruction (instead
of demolition) and renovation of an old heating plant to house the new system. Smith
recycled 99.64 percent of disassembled materials, including more than 400 tons of
steel, iron and crushed concrete. Similar efforts are part of the site preparation
for Ford Hall, the new science and engineering building. Old materials and scraps
from new construction will be sorted and recycled to a projected level of 90 percent,
easing the burden on landfills in the Pioneer Valley and beyond. The recycling also
involves intact removal of items such as windows and doors, which are donated to
area nonprofits including ReStore, a company that sells quality home improvement
materials at very low prices.
The recently completed Conway House is so energy-efficient
that its boilers—originally
designed to heat the building’s hot water in the summer when the campus’s
central heating plant is down—are now used year-round for hot water as well
as heat. On cold days, while the boiler is “busy” heating water during
peak demand periods, the well-insulated building holds heat until the hot water needs
are met; then the system switches back to heating the building. Consequently Conway
House was not connected to the central heating plant, saving the project significant
Physical Plant is retrofitting or installing 718 incandescent
light fixtures in athletic facilities, 460 of which will be new. This project will
pay for itself in just under five years, saving $16,000 annually in energy costs
and reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 39 tons a year—the equivalent of taking
seven cars off the road or planting 11 acres of trees. The college responsibly recycles
compact fluorescent lightbulbs by sending old or damaged lamps to recycling centers
that separate and reclaim the mercury, phosphor, steel, iron and copper parts.
Smith’s contract with Zipcar, the nation’s largest car-sharing service,
has put Smith community members in the driver’s seat of a Toyota Matrix or
a Honda Civic. The cars may be reserved for use by the hour or day. “Giving
students another reason to avoid bringing a car to campus is a win for the college
and Northampton, and a natural next step in our sustainability efforts,” says
Smith President Carol Christ. The company estimates that each Zipcar eliminates the
need for more than 20 privately owned vehicles. On a broader scale, those at Zipcar
endeavor to contribute to a healthier environment by reducing traffic congestion.
perspectives on sustainability have also entered the arena of contemporary art, as
surveyed in the Smith College Museum of Art’s recent exhibit—“Beyond
Green: Toward a Sustainable Art.” Co-organized by the Smart Museum of Art at
the University of Chicago and Independent Curators International, the exhibition
explored the work of artists who are challenging the ways in which we make, use and
consume a variety of objects, such as food, cars, clothes and shelter. More information
on the traveling exhibition, which ended its run at Smith on April 15, can be found
For more information about previous
and current sustainability efforts at Smith, as well as useful links to the many
aspects of sustainability, visit www.smith.edu/green.
Top: Smith’s new cogeneration power plant, which
will increase operational efficiency and decrease energy costs, required renovation
of an old heating plant to house the new system. Above: Deconstruction of the college’s
former bookstore included the intact removal of equipment, such as heating and air-conditioning
control and feed hardware, that will be used elsewhere on campus.