AASHE Interview Series with Lowell Rasmussen of the University of Minnesota - Morris
posted by Niles Barnes on July 31st, 2008 Go to comments
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In the third installment of the AASHE Interview Series we get the chance to hear from Lowell Rasmussen, the Vice Chancellor of Finance and Facilities at the University of Minnesota Morris. UM Morris is a signatory to the American College & University Presidents Climate Commitment and has set an aggressive goal of being carbon neutral by 2010. In this interview, Lowell discusses the many renewable energy projects that the campus is undertaking and the partnerships they have built in the community.
Having worked at UM Morris since 1993, Lowell serves as a leader in advocating and supporting renewable energy on campus. This year, one of the University’s iconic wind turbines was chosen to be the cover photograph on the 2007 ACUPCC Annual Report.
What campus renewable energy initiatives are you working on at the moment? 
Right now the campus has several projects either under construction or about to be finalized. The campus has an aggressive goal of being carbon neutral by 2010 using local resources and onsite renewable energy production. Currently UMM receives more than 50% of its electricity from a 1.65 MW wind turbine located adjacent to the campus. Through the use of Clean Renewable Energy Bonds (CREB) the campus is about to seek University of Minnesota Regents’s approval to add a steam turbine and a second wind turbine to the onsite production capacity. Capital bonding has provided construction dollars to complete a biomass gasification plant that will start its trial runs later this month. This is a thermal conversion system that will produce steam for heating and cooling the campus. This plant will provide over 80% of the thermal needs of the campus. The campus is also completing an assessment for a two million dollar energy service contract to improve conservation and energy infrastructure. A unique project is a joint CREB application with a Native American tribe that will result in a jointly owned wind turbine located on Native American tribal lands that will generate revenue for green initiatives for both institutions.
How did you get started in campus sustainability?
Students have been an integral part of the process. Students initiated the discussion of buying green electricity to use on the campus. Through those discussions the campus actively sought out how to reduce our carbon footprint. The green energy initiatives have been underway on the campus since 2001.
What campus sustainability success are you most proud of?
One of the most difficult but key outcomes for the Morris campus is the integration of conservation, onsite renewable combined heat and power generation, local foods initiative, and the enthusiasm that students and faculty have shown to move Morris into a living learning sustainable community. This required the institution to take risks. Fortunately, the University of Minnesota system understood that to be a national leader, the Morris campus had to entrepreneurial and push the envelope on renewable energy.
Has there been community collaboration between the University and the renewable energy projects on campus?
The campus has had the good fortune to have strong collaboration within the community. We have a USDA soil research lab and a U of MN Agricultural Research and Outreach station next to the campus. This three way collaboration, called the “Green Prairie Alliance,” and has provided a cornerstone for the community to build an aggressive renewable energy research and demonstration facility.
In what area(s) do you see the biggest room for growth in the campus renewable energy field?
The living, learning community provides a twofold benefit. The campus is building a state of the art small scale onsite renewable distributed energy generation system at the same time providing hands on educational and research platform for undergraduate research. The research and demonstration facility intends to provide the roadmap for other communities at the same time demonstrating to the students of this campus community that carbon reductions can be done now and can provide a green economy for small communities.
How are you incorporating the social dimensions of sustainability into your work?
The renewable energy initiatives underway at the Morris campus are driven by the need to be sustainable, to provide local economic benefits, and to be environmentally responsible. Understanding our ecosystem, our natural resources, and our local interdependence is a strong tradition in small rural communities and the renewable energy platforms provide a new sense community vitality that can rebuild and restore rural America.
How are you tracking your progress toward sustainability?
We are a signatory to the American College & University Presidents Climate Commitment (ACUPCC), a member of the Chicago Climate Exchange, a member of the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) and participant in AASHE’s Sustainability Tracking, Assessment, and Rating System (STARS), American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE) member, Regional UMACS conference and a member of the U of MN system wide sustainability committee.
Is there a particular insight (learning experience or “ah-ha” moment) you have had working on campus renewable energy?
Two moments are significant. When we first pushed the start button on the 1.65MW wind turbine and watched the massive blades begin to provide over 50% of our electrical power, and understanding just how much annually grown carbon that was being produced in fields surrounding the campus. (We will need 8,000 tons of plant biomass to power the biomass plant—and Stevens county, the county in which Morris is located, produces over 660,000 tons annually.)
How are you approaching the issues around biofuels?
The partnership that Morris has with the ag research station and the soils lab is invaluable in understanding the issues surrounding the use of carbon for energy. The biomass plant at Morris is not designed to use food stocks for fuel. It is designed to use plant material that typically is not used in the production of food. The thermal conversion of carbon focuses on the low value carbon stocks that are produced by photosynthesis. We are currently testing the use of native grasses as a fuel stock for gasification.
In what ways are students involved in your work?
We provide student internships during the summer to conduct research on test plots and biomass fuel stocks, academic undergraduate research on specific areas of plant material, ecology, economics, and emissions associated with the biomass plant, and we provide research opportunities to work on wind studies, turbine operations, and bat and bird kill surveys. (Morris data since 2005, no birds, one bat.)
How are you approaching the issues around carbon offsets and or renewable energy credits (RECs)?
Just recently, the alumni association agreed to purchase offsets for the annual miles driven by the University fleet vehicles. With a goal to be carbon neutral, all current carbon credits from our onsite systems are dedicated to the campus. If we are able to install a second large wind turbine, we may generate more green electricity than we use and could then sell excess production on the grid. However, we still need to accommodate our fleet, air travel, and grounds operations before we would sell the credits.
What advice would you give to others in your position who are just getting started?
Most campuses are communities within communities. Understand the energy use and renewable energy resources within your communities. Think differently about energy, energy use and energy waste. Understand who your stakeholders are, and how energy use impacts them. Renewable energy stakeholders may be both within the campus community and within the local community. Establish an environmental plan, a carbon master plan, a capital plan and an academic plan to promote sustainability. Listen to your students–a recent survey indicated that 13% of the entering freshmen consider sustainability in choosing their college campus.
Chancellor Johnson is a Signatory to the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment. What do you feel will be the most difficult aspect of moving toward climate neutrality at UM - Morris?
The plans are in place, we have administrative and Regents support, we are using creative and innovative tools to finance new projects and cost avoidance for volatile fossil fuel prices, we are not asking students to purchase renewable energy; we are asking students to be a part of a new renewable, sustainable world. We know we can meet the goal of carbon neutrality and we have 12 months to get all the pieces in place to demonstrate that we can do it now.