NCNU’s energy conservation campaign yields green results

As the second highest-ranking Taiwanese university on the GreenMetric World University Ranking last year, the National Chi Nan University (NCNU) proceeded to work with Taiwan Power Company (Taipower) this year to launch an energy conservation campaign in May. The initial results show a grand culmination of NT$1.16 million in electrical bill savings, and a reduction of 181,000 kilograms of carbon emissions between June and September in comparison to the same period last year.

Huang Mei-lian, director of Taipower’s Nantou branch office, paid a visit to NCNU President Dr. Yuhlong Oliver Su on Nov. 11. At the meeting, President Su thanked Taipower for sending a service team to the campus in April to overhaul the university’s power-saving practices and offer energy-saving suggestions to assist with sustainable energy management.

The school adopted a series of energy-saving measures following Taipower’s advice, including pumping water into the water tower at off-peak hours at night, raising the standard temperature for air conditioning by 1 degree across campus, activating heat pumps at off-peak hours at night, and applying for demand side management measures.

In addition, the ideas of saving energy and reduce carbon emissions were promoted in various school activities as well as related curriculums to raise awareness among the faculty, staff, and students. The efforts were fruitful. Power consumption and power bills both went down significantly – 338,000 kWh less than the same period last year.

Director Huang pointed out that NCNU’s energy-saving achievements serve as an exemplary model for other higher-education institutions as well as industrial users nationwide.

NCNU not only promotes energy-saving measures, but also supports the use of renewable energy such as solar panels, micro-hydropower equipment, and wind-powered equipment across its campus, which is equivalent to the size of 210 football fields.

NCNU further integrates environmental sustainability education with its course design and outreach efforts. To promote understanding and adoption of clean energy, NCNU regularly arranges visits for neighboring communities to learn about the solar photovoltaic systems and the importance of renewable energy sources.