Changing lights on campus to Light Emitting Diode (LED) illumination, such as on the College Green, will save the College money each year and boost sustainability efforts. /FILE PHOTO BY KEITH WALTERS '11
As a cost-savings and sustainability effort, the College is replacing traditional lights on campus with Light Emitting Diode (LED) illumination.
Forty-four projects have been completed in the switch-over since 2015, and several are in progress, according to George Stooks, assistant vice president for facilities and planning. One of those completed projects — the College Green — was completed last summer. In total, all of the completed projects have saved the College approximately $30,000 total per year in energy, according to Stooks.
The goal is to identify funding for and complete all of the lights in campus by 2020. Facilities is using operating and capital funds as well as rebates for the work, which can require installation of new fixtures for the LEDs. Maintenance Supervisor Shannon Cowdrick and his staff have been instrumental in the initiative.
When the switch-over is complete, the College anticipates saving 1.8 million kilowatt hours of electricity per year, which translates to approximately $125,000 in savings per year. Included in the savings is reduced repair parts and labor savings to support the LED technology.
“The project also reduces resources needed to maintain lights and replace bulbs, and reduces what Geneseo puts into the waste stream,” says Stooks.
The switch-over is part of Geneseo’s comprehensive effort to be sustainable. View other campus and facilities projects related to sustainability on our news center. Learn about all of Geneseo's sustainability efforts using our interactive map.