Energy Conservation : Past & Present Projects : Students Vote "Yes" For Wind Power!

University of Colorado Environmental Center
University of Colorado, Campus Box 207 Boulder, CO 80309

For immediate release: April 17, 2000

Contact:

Ghita Levenstein, CU Environmental Center/ Clean Energy Now! (303) 492-3229
Wendy Hunter, CU Environmental Center/ Clean Energy Now! (303) 492-8308
Rudd Mayer, Land and Water Fund of the Rockies (303) 444-1188 ext. 227

 

University of Colorado Students Vote "Yes" For Wind Power!

BOULDER, April 17, 2000 (CU Environmental Center)

In the largest student voter turnout in University of Colorado history, students voted by a 5 to 1 margin to increase student fees by $1 per semester for 4 years to purchase wind power from Public Service Company of Colorado's Ponnequin wind farm. This clean, renewable source of energy will lower campus emissions of CO by 2.8 million pounds every year.

The increase in fees will raise $50,000 per year, enough to purchase the output of an entire wind turbine (2 million kWh per year), making CU-Boulder the largest university purchaser of wind power in the nation! The issue was placed on the ballot after 1,300 students signed a petition in favor of purchasing wind for 3 buildings on campus (the Student Union, the Health Center, and the Recreation Center). Students votes showed an overwhelming amount of support of wind energy, with 5,178 in favor and 1,096 opposed, the largest margin of any referendum on this spring's ballot.

Many volunteers from the student group Clean Energy Now! along with the Land and Water Fund of the Rockies ran a week long campaign including handing out colorful pinwheels and information about wind power and its benefits. A "CU wind farm" comprised of hundreds of pinwheels covered a lawn in the center of campus.

"You couldn't walk around campus without seeing students carrying pinwheels," said Ghita Levenstein, the Energy Program Coordinator of the Environmental Center, "we hope this is just the beginning of the use of clean energy here at CU, as well as a model for other Universities and organizations to follow." CU students have a history of environmental leadership. The campus recycling program was started in response to student activism as was the student bus pass program.

We salute the initiative of CU students to address the global issue of reducing the use of fossil fuels. This action will allow the University to take an important first step in responding to what may be the biggest environmental and economic issue of this century," stated Rudd Mayer, Green Energy Program Director at the Boulder-based Land and Water Fund of the Rockies, a regional group that works on clean energy policies in the west.

Will Toor, director of the CU Environmental Center and Mayor of Boulder, said, "It's inspiring to see such support for environmental protection from CU's students. They are showing that they are willing to back up their values with their money."

Pictures of the campaign and the Ponnequin wind farm are available, please call (303)492-3229 for copies.

 

 

 

ECO-CAMPUS
(From www.envirocitizen.org)
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This dispatch is from Ghita Levenstein and Wendy Hunter (1998 Summer Training Academy graduate):
I am writing from CU-Boulder with big news! Student elections were last week, and students voted "yes" to increase student fees by one dollar a semester to purchase wind power for the University! The increase will be enough to purchase an entire turbine's worth of energy (2 million kWh per year) and will be the largest University purchase of wind in the nation!

We needed at least 15% of the student population to vote in favor of the wind referenda, and ended up with about 22% voting yes, AND the largest election turnout in CU history! Many volunteers from the student group Clean Energy Now! along with the Land and Water Fund of the Rockies ran a week long campaign including handing out colorful pinwheels and information about wind power and its benefits. A CU wind farm comprised of hundreds of pinwheels covered a lawn in the center of campus. You couldn't walk around campus without seeing students carrying pinwheels! We hope this is just the beginning of the use of clean energy here at CU, as well as a model for other Universities and organizations to follow.

For more info, contact:

Ghita Levenstein, 303.492.3229
Wendy Hunter, CU Environmental Center 303.492.8308
Rudd Mayer, Land and Water Fund of the Rockies, 303.444.1188 ext. 227.

Related Media:

"Wind Power at the University of Colorado, Boulder" is an article in the May 2001 issue of Declaration, the journal of the University Leaders for a Sustainable Future.

Randal Swisher mentions the CU wind power purchase at the end of the speech he gave in Washington D.C. on Earth Day. The link below has a video tape/audio clips of all of the speakers in D.C. that day, so when you go to that link, click on Randal Swisher and you can see and hear us being mentioned! Pretty cool! http://www.earthday.net/events/onthemall_entertainment.stm