Not All Electricity is Created Equal
Today, electricity is generated from cleaner renewable energy sources like hydropower, geothermal, wind and solar. Because these sources are naturally replenished and produce little to no emissions when converted to electricity, they work to decrease the adverse effects of climate change. The University at Buffalo currently generates and purchases 100% of its electricity from renewable sources. This has been achieved through direct onsite solar (one of the largest on-campus producers of renewable energy in the country), off campus solar generation and the purchasing of renewable energy credits.
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Sub-strategies
- Phase I: Procure 100% of electricity from onsite and offsite renewable energy generation
- Phase II (2020-2022): Increase renewable energy generation onsite becoming one of the top higher education campus producers
- Phase III (2022-2024): Assess possibility of large scale renewable energy purchase offsite
- Phase IV (2025-2030): Continue to build onsite and offsite renewable energy capacity
- Phase V (2030): Leverage New York State's carbon neutral grid
Policies
New York State's energy and carbon reduction goals as well as the newly enacted Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act provide a solid foundation upon which the committee will work. In addition, our university will further policy development at the local level and continue partnering with NYSERDA and other community partners to leverage purchasing power of anchor community institutions for large scale renewable purchases.
Updates
Fall 2022 - Spring 2023
In December 2022, the university completed a monumental project with the newly constructed onsite solar initiative. This project now generates 12.7 million kWh a year – enough to power more than 1m750 homes or charge over 1 trillion smartphones— making UB one of the largest on-campus producers of renewable energy in the country. The project is composed of three main ground-mount arrays (the Bizers, Creekside and the Solar Stroll) and four rooftops.
Fall 2020 - Spring 2021
UB is on track to install approximately 12 megawatts of on-site solar within the year, which will consist of ground-mounted arrays as well as rooftops. This will increase campus capacity by 15 times the current levels. In addition to the on-site work, a consortium of local institutions, including UB, is also drafting an off-site RFP that will boost overall acquisition to 50% of UB’s overall electricity consumption.
Committee
- Captain: Ryan McPherson, chief sustainability officer
- Suzanne Gentz, Director, Facilities Finance
- Dalton Holler, buyer, Purchasing and Contract Services
- Brendan Neil, associate counsel for contracts, Office of General Counsel
- Tonga Pham, associate vice president for University Facilities
- Lawrence Poturalski, Electrical Engineer, Design and Construction
- David Sawran, junior utilities accountant/analyst, Facilities Finance
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