---

News Release

Last modified: Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Lindley Hall, University Apartments East, Alpha Epsilon Phi lead IU Energy Challenge

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 11, 2012

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- We're now a week into the spring 2012 Indiana University Energy Challenge at IU Bloomington, and the leaders in the competition are University Apartments East, Lindley Hall and Alpha Epsilon Phi sorority.

This seventh running of the challenge has more participants than ever, with 16 residence halls, 21 academic buildings and 24 Greek houses participating.

Four apartment buildings joined the residence hall competition for the first time this year, and University Apartments East is proving to be a passionate participant. The building is in first place among the residence halls in terms of electricity savings, with more than a 15 percent reduction in use compared to its baseline. Ashton Hall and Evermann Apartments follow close behind. As a whole, the residence halls have already saved a combined 57,473 kilowatt-hours of electricity.

Lindley Hall leads the academic buildings with a 17 percent drop in its water and electric use, and the SPEA and Optometry buildings follow in second and third place, respectively. Academic buildings have saved a total of 8,383 kilowatt-hours during the first week of competition.

In the Greek house category, Alpha Epsilon Phi has reduced its electricity consumption by 21 percent after the first week and dropped its water consumption by 28 percent. Sororities Phi Mu and Kappa Kappa Gamma follow close behind in second and third place, respectively. The aggregate savings from the Greek houses is 16,348 kilowatt-hours and 116,500 gallons of water.

The DeVault Alumni Center has been removed from the electricity portion of the academic building challenge due to a faulty meter, but the building's water consumption will still be tracked. Additionally, abnormally high increases in water consumption at Campus View Apartments are being investigated.

Campus-wide, the first week's competition reduced electricity use by 82,204 kilowatt-hours, which prevented more than 180,000 pounds of carbon dioxide from being emitted. Water consumption at IU was reduced by 195,500 gallons during the same time period.

These savings are due in part to the enthusiastic efforts of campus groups such as Greeks Go Green, NetImpact, academic building Green Teams, the Residence Halls Association and its Center Directors of Environmentalism, which have demonstrated the power of students, faculty and staff in helping Indiana University become a more sustainable campus.

In addition to competing in the traditional campus-wide Energy Challenge, IU's residence halls are representing Indiana University in the second annual Campus Conservation Nationals, in which 150 other colleges and universities are competing to reduce electricity and water consumption.

"Keep up the great work! You all have one of the highest total kWh and % reduction savings nationally," wrote Andrew deCoriolis, director of engagement at energy monitoring company Lucid, one of the sponsors of Campus Conservation Nationals, after he saw the results of IU Bloomington's first readings.

The IU Energy Challenge will end April 23, and an award ceremony will take place at noon April 26 at Sample Gates.

For more information about the competition, graphics displaying emerging results, and tips for conserving energy and water, visit energychallenge.indiana.edu. The Campus Conservation National dashboard for the residence halls can also be found via this page. More information about the Indiana University Office of Sustainability can be found at www.indiana.edu/~sustain.

---

---