Stanford should do more to conserve energy

// news / daily - january 31, 2006

http://daily.stanford.edu/tempo?page=content&id=19149&repository=0001_article
written by Editorial Board

Stanford spent almost $4 million on electricity and water in 2004. In addition to utility costs, the University’s energy use exacts unknown but significant environmental costs that we all have to bear. With this in mind, the editorial board would like to take the opportunity to commend Students for a Sustainable Stanford and Residential and Dining Enterprises for partnering on the 2006 Energy Bowl. The Editorial Board agrees that significant steps can and should be taken by the student body to conserve energy and incentives should be put in place to ensure their participation.

Energy use at Stanford largely suffers from a common problem in economics known as the “tragedy of the commons.” Because students living in dorms and Row houses don’t bear the costs of energy use individually, they tend to over-consume electricity and water. In the end, higher utility prices may be passed on to future students in the form of increased housing costs — something no one wants — but any individual’s actions to reduce their own energy use will have minimal effect on this price.

To force each student to pay their own utilities cost would be infeasible and expensive. The Energy Bowl, however, which rewards students for consuming less energy, is a practical and rewarding solution to the status quo. Students should be rewarded for engaging in habits that reduce utility costs and benefit the environment. One would hope that these habits continue throughout one’s life as we all strive to be better environmental citizens.

Based on last year’s performance, we know that the Stanford Energy Bowl is an effective tool toward achieving measurable reductions in Stanford’s energy usage. R&DE, however, would do well to pass even more of their cost savings from the competition on to students. It might consider giving dorm complexes a certain percentage of their facility’s Energy Bowl utilities savings in a dorm fund supplement. Dorms might continue to compete for additional prizes but all would be given stronger incentives to conserve energy regardless of their relative positions.

Furthermore, the idea that winning dorms will receive free installations of energy-saving appliances is disconcerting. Why isn’t the University itself seriously undertaking energy conservation and installing energy-saving devices in all dorms? Even when ignoring environmental costs, high fuel prices coupled with long-term savings from reduced energy consumption should provide more than the sufficient impetus to install energy-conserving devices now.

All of the reasons that Stanford should continue its generally positive direction toward conservation can be based in cost-savings for the University and, by extension, its students. The University, however, should invest in energy conservation — even if it is not financially cost-efficient — as part of its role as a responsible global citizen. Rampant energy use, if left unchecked, will continue to accelerate the processes of global warming and environmental degradation. Of course, Stanford will not single-handedly stop all environmental damage, but it still remains incumbent upon this University to do its part to help the environment.

We again applaud the Students for a Sustainable Stanford and R&DE for continuing the Energy Bowl. More has yet to be done, however, and we encourage Stanford to act responsibly by engaging in more extensive future environmental initiatives.