College Energy Costs to Increase by at Least $1 Million

Beginning in January 2010, the "energy caps" that regulate energy pricing will be removed in Pennsylvania. Kathie Shafter, Vice President of Operations at Messiah College, says that ten years ago the Pennsylvania goverment enforced regulations on how much an energy provider could charge for its services.

Brad Markley, Director of Facilities, says that the college uses 27 million kilowatt hours (kWh) a year. "The average home uses 750 kilowatts a month," he says, which adds up to 9000 kWh per year. "That's a huge difference," he says. Messiah College uses enough energy to power 3000 homes a year.

Shafer says that Messiah College spends about two to three million dollars a year on energy. "We originally thought there would be a 60% increase in fees," Shafer says. Now the increase is projected at 20%.

Lois Voght, Vice President for Finance, says that "Even a 20% increase is significant in terms of dollars."

A 20% increase amounts to 3.8 million dollars per year, an increase of 1 million dollars.

"For us, even 1% of 3 million is a big deal," Shafer says. "It's equal to one semester [for a student] here without financial aid."

Shafer says the Department of Operations is very serious about preparing for the price increase. "We want to reduce usage so bills are never higher than" the three million dollars budgeted for this school year's energy bill, she says.

Using money budgeted to a different are, Shafer says the college replaced energy systems in Eisenhower in preparation for the rise in energy costs. She says that the heat and air conditioning in Eisenhower is now powered by a mixture of electric and propane.

Markley says that "Propane is more efficient: there's less carbon, and it's less money. We've converted the [Climenhaga]Fine Arts Center, Frey academic, Jordan [academic] and Fry residential." By using both electricity and propane, Markley explains that the college will have more control over its energy bill because it can switch to the fuel that costs less.

Both Shafer and Markley say that using both electricity and propane is best for the college. "We're trying to put in the most efficient dual source systems," Shafer says.

Markley says he recently negotiated a two year contract with PPL and Sempra, Messiah College's energy providers. He explains that the college will pay a set amount for the next two years: "If we don't use all of the electricity, Sempra will sell it and give us the profit."

Messiah College residents and staff can help energy costs as well, Shafer says. "It's not just students but the campus community. . . It relates to our commitment to sustainability." She says that empty offices are lit until 10 p.m. and computers are on all day.

"We want to encourage everyone to think about how much they use energy," Shafer says. She suggests that students be aware of their personal choices. Students should be conscious of leaving their VCRs or TVs on and turn them off when not in use. To further reduce energy, students should not leave the window open while the heat is on and should shorten their showers.

Shafer says that plugged in appliances use energy, even if they are not turned on.

Shafer also says that, in the spring, the operations department will be starting a "Turn It Off" campaign. The campaign will include a website for students to share ideas about installing cost efficient utilities, reducing energy, and problems they encounter in doing so.

The campus community is encouraged to reduce their energy use and the administration will explore other ways to lower costs. "We're not going to penalize students," Shafer says, but "we would really like to see a grass roots movement make recommendations."

Shafer says that it is important for students to get involved. "For seniors, it's particularly important because they'll be living on their own soon."

Shafer also explains that students will not have to make drastic changes to reduce the use of energy: "We want to be cost effective, but we're not doing anything to jeopardize life safety or standards of living.