Earth, wind and fire
ESF installs wood-burning boiler, wind turbine on satellite campuses to promote alternative energy resources
By Rebekah Jones
Posted: 4/15/08, 11:16 PM EST Section: News
The State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry has had yet another development in the field of alternative energy resources with two additions to the local green movement -and it's not just in Syracuse.
The Ranger School, a satellite campus of ESF located three hours away in Wanakena, N.Y., will be replacing a 20-year-old oil boiler with a new wood boiler that saves 8,200 gallons of fuel per year.
The new boiler will use 90-120 tons of wood chips and is expected to reduce the annual cost of heating by $30,000. Most of the boiler costs will be covered by a grant from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), said Michael Kelleher, the director of renewable energy systems at ESF.
"Importantly the wood chips, because they come from trees, a renewable resource, will significantly reduce the carbon emissions from the boiler because as trees grow, they sequester or capture carbon from the atmosphere," he said.
"We will use the Ranger School wood boiler project as a demonstration to help communities understand the environmental and economic benefits of utilizing wood as a source of heating," Kelleher said. "Another advantage of this type of system is that because the fuel (wood) is obtained locally, more of the economic benefits stay in local communities, rather than being sent to large oil companies and foreign countries."
The boiler was developed in Europe and will be manufactured in New York by Advanced Climate Technologies, he said.
A wind turbine is used to meet all energy needs of the classrooms at Heiberg Forest, another ESF satellite campus located about 25 miles south of Syracuse.
The wind speed at the Heiberg site is expected to average 12.3 mph at the tower height of 100 feet, Kelleher said. The Endurance wind turbine is projected to produce approximately 7,000 kWh per year. The wind turbine cost is just less than $47,000, with a $26,000 incentive from NYSERDA. The net cost to ESF will be approximately $20,000, he said.
The Ranger School, a satellite campus of ESF located three hours away in Wanakena, N.Y., will be replacing a 20-year-old oil boiler with a new wood boiler that saves 8,200 gallons of fuel per year.
The new boiler will use 90-120 tons of wood chips and is expected to reduce the annual cost of heating by $30,000. Most of the boiler costs will be covered by a grant from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), said Michael Kelleher, the director of renewable energy systems at ESF.
"Importantly the wood chips, because they come from trees, a renewable resource, will significantly reduce the carbon emissions from the boiler because as trees grow, they sequester or capture carbon from the atmosphere," he said.
"We will use the Ranger School wood boiler project as a demonstration to help communities understand the environmental and economic benefits of utilizing wood as a source of heating," Kelleher said. "Another advantage of this type of system is that because the fuel (wood) is obtained locally, more of the economic benefits stay in local communities, rather than being sent to large oil companies and foreign countries."
The boiler was developed in Europe and will be manufactured in New York by Advanced Climate Technologies, he said.
A wind turbine is used to meet all energy needs of the classrooms at Heiberg Forest, another ESF satellite campus located about 25 miles south of Syracuse.
The wind speed at the Heiberg site is expected to average 12.3 mph at the tower height of 100 feet, Kelleher said. The Endurance wind turbine is projected to produce approximately 7,000 kWh per year. The wind turbine cost is just less than $47,000, with a $26,000 incentive from NYSERDA. The net cost to ESF will be approximately $20,000, he said.
Be the first to comment on this story