Energy-saving just got competitive.
NC’s Energy Team is challenging students and employees at the Welland Campus and Daniel J. Patterson Campus in Niagara-on-the-Lake to participate in an Earth Hour challenge.
Earth Hour – taking place on Saturday, March 22 – challenges individuals, businesses, and organizations to turn off their lights for an hour in the evening, collectively taking action to reduce human’s negative impacts on the environment.
Welland and NOTL will face-off to see which campus can save the most energy.
“We hope students and employees will be inspired to take part – even in small ways – in this friendly competition between our Niagara campuses and make a difference in the College’s energy consumption,” said Danielle Notarianni, Manager, Energy and Assets.
The Energy Team will rely on their electricity models for each campus to measure the reduction.
“Our models use baseline, schedule, and weather data to predict the expected electricity usage for each day to compare to the actual electricity usage,” explained Mae Lannan, Energy Analyst.
The winning campus will be determined by the largest difference from expected usage to actual usage over Saturday and Sunday.
The prize for the winning campus will be a free hot beverage (in a bring-your own-reusable mug) for the first 100 students and employees on March 31 from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m., courtesy of NCSAC.
With Earth Hour taking place on a Saturday, the NC community can do their part the Friday before by:
- Turning off and unplugging equipment and lighting when not in use, such as turning off computers and monitors, office and desk lights, etc.
- Keeping exterior and interior doors and windows closed to maintain heating and cooling.
- Turning off taps and being mindful of water usage, such as in washrooms, kitchenettes and labs.
Energy mindfulness is encouraged throughout the year, with Earth Hour being an opportunity to come together as a community and take steps to reduce our collective consumption.
In your day-to-day on campus, do you see areas where energy is wasted? Let us know at [email protected].
The winning campus will be announced on March 25.
