Campus Ecology - Campus Ecology - National Wildlife Federation

College on its way to being emissions-free

Katie Edelen

May 18, 2010

Often, small or geographically isolated schools are unable to take advantage of neighboring sustainability efforts. But Augsburg College, a small, urban college located in the heart of South Minneapolis, hasn’t let its small stature prevent a big change. The school is well on its way towards being emissions-free by 2019, via a purchasing agreement that allows Augsburg to be powered 100% by wind energy.

The school boasts a student population of 3,785 and has 18 major buildings. While more rural counterparts, such as St. Olaf College, in Northfield, Minnesota, have been able to construct their own turbines, Augsburg College must contend with a considerably smaller area for construction or expansion in the heart of South Minneapolis.

In the student elections of March 2008, students voted to add a $14.75 student fee per semester to their tuition in order to purchase wind-generated energy. Not only is wind energy production emissions-free, it also does not require water treatment for production. Now, Augsburg is the largest purchaser of wind energy from Xcel’s Wind Source, which is the largest provider of wind energy in the nation.

Without student support, this agreement might not have been possible. It takes about 3-1.5 MW turbines to cover the annual electricity usage of Augsburg. Augsburg’s purchase is 12 million kWh, which is the equivalent to powering 1,000+ homes. Producing this electricity with fossil fuels would have emitted 23 million pounds of CO₂.

The wind energy initiative was set in motion when students began organizing the Focus the Nation teach-in, which took place on campus January of 2008. Augsburg, along with more than 1,000 colleges, high schools, civic organizations and businesses across the country, hosted a teach-in to facilitate a day of brainstorming and engagement in discussions concerning responses to environmental challenges sponsored by Focus the Nation. The event focused on the single issue of global warming. Alex Hoselton, Day-student body vice president at the time, says, "If we wanted to have an actionable result from the event, it had to be something that was permanent and went beyond 1 year," he said.

A student team conducted an audit of Augsburg's energy costs to determine that using 100% wind-generated electricity would cost approximately $140,000 more than the college's current annual electricity costs. Surprisingly, the additional cost of purchasing wind energy for Augsburg was rather minimal: an additional penny for every kilowatt (kWh) of energy.

The Day-student government voted in February to include the wind energy fee referendum on the spring ballot. The referendum passed, and the student senate also voted in March to add $10 from each Day College student's activity fee to the initiative, bringing the total Day-student contribution to approximately $72,000. "Our strategy was to raise more than half of the estimated funds to leverage commitment from the administration and the Board of Regents through our own unequivocal pledge," Hoselton says. As a result, the administration approved the initiative and helped to secure the remaining funds for the purchase.

For Hoselton, the additional fee is a testament to the mission of the college and its students’ consciousness. He says, "It's a moral issue for me. We say we need to be better stewards of the environment and better neighbors. If we aren't living that out, then we aren't completing our mission. An extra cost is marginal compared to what it means to be an institution with integrity."

An initial agreement that covered the dorms only was signed in January 2008, and then a second contract covering the rest of the campus buildings was signed in September 2008, making Augsburg 100% wind-powered.

With this purchase, this campus hopes to exemplify its leadership and stewardship values and ideals, taking a pledge to protect its community, both local and global. Given Augsburg’s urban location, there were obvious restrictions to a renewable energy implementation program. Despite these barriers, Augsburg students were committed to demonstrating the need and alternative to such a problem and in doing so, has set a new precedent.