Spring Break
Study Finds Students The Biggest Water Consumers On Campus
Caitlin Emma
Issue date: 4/28/08 Section: News
The university has already taken measures to improve the numbers. The audit specifies various systems to monitor water use and detect leaks and plans to make infrastructural improvements such as the usage of low-flush, low-flow equipment in residence halls, academic buildings and dining halls.
"Technology is improving," Miller said. "We can now have low-flow fixtures without compromising quality."
The audit also details plans to conduct an overhaul of water usage at the Central Plant. By building a system to treat and recycle waste water to cool the power co-generation plant, the university could total an estimated 250,000 gallons of water per day.
Since then, the university has made efforts to monitor its pumping from the Fenton and Willimantic rivers, and even avoided pumping from the Fenton last July through December, said Miller.
Plans toward changing faculty and student behavior are also a priority.
"The residence halls are a huge opportunity," said Miller. "There, it's not just systemic improvements, but behavioral improvements as well. It's about building awareness."
Residence halls have held contests to see which buildings can conserve the most water and dining halls are making attempts at ways to conserve.
Northwest dining hall recently attempted a pilot effort to go "trayless" in order to improve food waste and water usage. "When people do not have trays, they take less food," said Daniel Britton, a sustainability coordinator with the Office of Environmental Policy. "This can result in a 20-40percent reduction in food waste."
While the effort did not last, the energy spent washing dishes for that week experienced a 24 percent reduction in water usage.
"The environment is not an infinite resource," said Miller. "It's a process about educating people and showing them what they can do."
Contact Caitlin Emma at Caitlin.Emma@UConn.edu.
"Technology is improving," Miller said. "We can now have low-flow fixtures without compromising quality."
The audit also details plans to conduct an overhaul of water usage at the Central Plant. By building a system to treat and recycle waste water to cool the power co-generation plant, the university could total an estimated 250,000 gallons of water per day.
Since then, the university has made efforts to monitor its pumping from the Fenton and Willimantic rivers, and even avoided pumping from the Fenton last July through December, said Miller.
Plans toward changing faculty and student behavior are also a priority.
"The residence halls are a huge opportunity," said Miller. "There, it's not just systemic improvements, but behavioral improvements as well. It's about building awareness."
Residence halls have held contests to see which buildings can conserve the most water and dining halls are making attempts at ways to conserve.
Northwest dining hall recently attempted a pilot effort to go "trayless" in order to improve food waste and water usage. "When people do not have trays, they take less food," said Daniel Britton, a sustainability coordinator with the Office of Environmental Policy. "This can result in a 20-40percent reduction in food waste."
While the effort did not last, the energy spent washing dishes for that week experienced a 24 percent reduction in water usage.
"The environment is not an infinite resource," said Miller. "It's a process about educating people and showing them what they can do."
Contact Caitlin Emma at Caitlin.Emma@UConn.edu.
Viewing Comments 1 - 3 of 3
Dawn Redden
posted 3/14/09 @ 8:30 AM EST
Good information. Thanks for the post.
Angela James
posted 3/16/09 @ 1:27 PM EST
This sounds like a great program and a great way to improve education in our schools!
Angela Stedman
posted 4/16/09 @ 6:22 PM EST
That looks like lots of fun. When I was in college we didn't had so many fun activities.
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