Pollution Prevention Institute Announces Awardees in ‘Greening Your Campus’ Student Competition

‌

New York State Pollution Prevention Institute at Rochester Institute of Technology has announced the awardees of its first annual “Greening Your Campus” student competition.

Five teams from Clarkson University, four teams from RIT and two teams from University at Buffalo will participate in this year’s competition.

“We are excited to see the students’ enthusiasm and motivation to participate,” says Anahita Williamson, director of New York State Pollution Prevention Institute. “This competition is such a great way for students to develop a proactive and practical approach to greening their campus. It’s hands-on learning for the students and the campuses will benefit as well.”

The “Greening Your Campus” student competition, developed by the New York State Pollution Prevention Institute's Research and Development Program, challenges student-led teams to identify a specific activity at their university with a large environmental footprint and define a solution for lowering the environmental impact.

The projects from the student teams will address the following issues on their respective campuses:

• Reduce the use and disposal of plastic water bottles
• Reduce campus vehicle idling
• Campus dining facility organic waste to energy conversion
• Thermal storage in refrigerator/freezer smart grid units
• Reduce lighting use in dorm hallways using motion sensors
• Determine the feasibility of installing wind micro-turbines on campus
• Refrigerator replacement feasibility
• Anaerobic digestion of cafeteria waste
• Evaluate use of wasted liquid byproducts of campus composting program
• Evaluate installation of water bottle refill stations
• Evaluate an ultra-high efficient natural gas turbine to get the campus “off the grid”

Student teams will present their projects at a culminating exhibition event in Albany this spring. The projects will be judged at the event. First, second and third place prizes will be awarded.

To find more information on the competition, go to the New York State Pollution Prevention Institute website.

The New York State Pollution Prevention Institute is a partnership between RIT, Clarkson University, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and the University at Buffalo and is funded by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. The institute works to make New York more sustainable by assisting companies in reducing toxic chemical use, solid and hazardous waste generation and overall emissions to the environment. It also encourages industry to efficiently and effectively utilize raw materials, energy and water.