Greenlines: Issue 31 (Switch Off Week Special)

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Greenlines

ISSN: 2048-2442 (Online)

Issue number 31, Switch Off Week 2013

The sustainability newsletter for the University

Switch On to Switching Off

NOW

MONTHLY

Inside this issue:

Photo competition winners Energy saving idea competition Climate and Sustainability Forum Pledge tree Green Impact effect Retrofit Design Competition From inside a Department

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equal to 45,310 kWh. The week’s total savings were the equivalent energy needed to send Pro-Vice-Chancellor Jeremy Sanders on a virtual tour around the globe; savings by midnight on Wednesday had shot him 28 times round. Snapshots of his various adventures can be seen on the Switch Off Week website. This impressive effort was followed by an end-of-the-week dwindle. Numb toes meant the temptation to turn on electric heaters was too great and our savings reduced over the week. The cold weather also meant an increase in electricity use by several of the University’s buildings that have controlled air temperatures and humidity levels. Unfortunately this is not something that conscientious switching-off can prevent.

The first ever Switch Off Week at the University of Cambridge resulted in an overall drop in electricity use of 2.1%, thanks to efforts by staff and students to turn off equipment and lights when not required. This figure reflects the energy saved in comparison to the week before – and has been adjusted to account for the weather.

Staff and students across many departments were inspired by a visible ‘Cambridge Green Challenge’ campaign to turn off lights and computers and other equipment, saving the equivalent of £5,000 or 50,484 kilowatt hours (kWh) by the end of the week.

On the other hand, some buildings saw tremendous savings over the week with a 7% reduction at the Old Schools, a 13% saving by the Careers Service in Stuart House and a huge 20% saving by Estate Management’s Kenmare House. These are an indication of the benefits of the small effort of switching off idle equipment, leading to drastic cuts in overall energy consumption.

A remarkable mid-week drop saw a 4.1% reduction in consumption by Wednesday without any ‘degree day’ correction for weather conditions,

Should the habit be continued throughout the year, and 2.1% less energy across the University be used every day, a total of £244,137 would be

www.admin.cam.ac.uk/environment : environment@admin.cam.ac.uk : @CambridgeSust


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