Campus Sustainability
Contact Information:
UCCS Office of Sustainability
1420 Austin Bluffs Pkwy CSB 207
Colorado Springs CO 80918
sustain@uccs.edu
Telephone: 719-255-3089
Linda Kogan
Director, Office of Sustainability
1420 Austin Bluffs Pkwy CSB 207
Colorado Springs CO 80918
lkogan@uccs.edu
Telephone: 719-255-3757
Sign up for our newsletter here!
Sustainability Tours:
Members of the UCCS Sustainability Office are available to lead campus tours that highlight sustainability initiatives. Highlights include a focus on LEED certification and high performance buildings, including the Recreation Center and Science Engineering, introduction to our single-stream recycling program, and a visit to our organic garden. Please call us at 255-3089 so that we can design a tour that meets the needs of your group.
Home > Water
Water
Water, as we all know, is essential to human life. Colorado, with about 14" of precipitation each year, is classified as a high desert.
The water we use is delivered and purified via a complex, energy-intensive system. Due to droughts, fire, salination, reduced snowpack and other reasons, our water supply is increasingly unpredictable and future water supplies will be increasingly more expensive to deliver. Therefore, it is imperative that we mangage this precious resource as wisely as possible.
In our Sustainability Strategic Plan, we identified the following objective with regard
to water conservation: Institute water conservation practices and planning throughout the campus to reduce both domestic and outdoor water use,
decrease utility costs, and model effective storm water management. The plan identifies three five-year targets from 2007 to 2012 with respect to water:
1) Decrease outdoor water use intensity on campus by 10%,
2) Decrease indoor water use in existing buildings by 10%, and
3) Develop a comprehensive stormwater plan that mitigates stormwater runoff and decreases impervious surfaces.
In pursuit of these targets, a portion of the $1.3 million Energy Performance Bond was applied to water savings retrofits, The university has started retrofitting buildings with low-flow fixtures, such as faucets and toilets. As of December 2008, several buildings have been retrofitted with new toilets, but there are still a number of buildings remaining to be done. None of the buildings have been retrofitted with lower flow aerators as of December 2008.
For new buildings, the university pursues at least a LEED Silver certification, which includes points for water efficiency. Designed water savings for the Recreation Center (2007) are 30% over a baseline building. Designed water savings for the Science Engineering Building (2009) are 42% over a baseline building. For more information on what we are doing to reduce water usage in our new buildings, as well as other high performance building features, go here.
Greening of State Government
UCCS is a state university and therefore is charged by the State of Colorado "to take a position of leadership in the new energy economy. State government will reduce energy consumption, increase the use of renewable energy sources, increase the energy efficiency and decrease the environmental impact of the state vehicle fleet, implement environmental purchasing standards and reduce waste and increase recycling." On April, 2007, Governor Bill Ritter, Jr., signed the Greening of State Government Executive Orders D011 07 and D012 07, which sets a goal of reducing water use from 2007 levels by 10% on or before June 30, 2012. At this time, UCCS is behind on achieving this goal, as shown in the chart below:
Landscape Water Conservation (Coming Soon)
Domestic Water Conservation (Coming Soon)
Storm Water Management (Coming Soon)
Contact Information:
UCCS Office of Sustainability
1420 Austin Bluffs Pkwy CSB 207
Colorado Springs CO 80918
sustain@uccs.edu
Telephone: 719-255-3089
Linda Kogan
Director, Office of Sustainability
1420 Austin Bluffs Pkwy CSB 207
Colorado Springs CO 80918
lkogan@uccs.edu
Telephone: 719-255-3757
Sign up for our newsletter here!
Sustainability Tours:
Members of the UCCS Sustainability Office are available to lead campus tours that highlight sustainability initiatives. Highlights include a focus on LEED certification and high performance buildings, including the Recreation Center and Science Engineering, introduction to our single-stream recycling program, and a visit to our organic garden. Please call us at 255-3089 so that we can design a tour that meets the needs of your group.
Water
Water, as we all know, is essential to human life. Colorado, with about 14" of precipitation each year, is classified as a high desert. The water we use is delivered and purified via a complex, energy-intensive system. Due to droughts, fire, salination, reduced snowpack and other reasons, our water supply is increasingly unpredictable and future water supplies will be increasingly more expensive to deliver. Therefore, it is imperative that we mangage this precious resource as wisely as possible.
In our Sustainability Strategic Plan, we identified the following objective with regard to water conservation: Institute water conservation practices and planning throughout the campus to reduce both domestic and outdoor water use, decrease utility costs, and model effective storm water management. The plan identifies three five-year targets from 2007 to 2012 with respect to water:
1) Decrease outdoor water use intensity on campus by 10%,
2) Decrease indoor water use in existing buildings by 10%, and
3) Develop a comprehensive stormwater plan that mitigates stormwater runoff and decreases impervious surfaces.
In pursuit of these targets, a portion of the $1.3 million Energy Performance Bond was applied to water savings retrofits, The university has started retrofitting buildings with low-flow fixtures, such as faucets and toilets. As of December 2008, several buildings have been retrofitted with new toilets, but there are still a number of buildings remaining to be done. None of the buildings have been retrofitted with lower flow aerators as of December 2008.
For new buildings, the university pursues at least a LEED Silver certification, which includes points for water efficiency. Designed water savings for the Recreation Center (2007) are 30% over a baseline building. Designed water savings for the Science Engineering Building (2009) are 42% over a baseline building. For more information on what we are doing to reduce water usage in our new buildings, as well as other high performance building features, go here.
Greening of State Government
UCCS is a state university and therefore is charged by the State of Colorado "to take a position of leadership in the new energy economy. State government will reduce energy consumption, increase the use of renewable energy sources, increase the energy efficiency and decrease the environmental impact of the state vehicle fleet, implement environmental purchasing standards and reduce waste and increase recycling." On April, 2007, Governor Bill Ritter, Jr., signed the Greening of State Government Executive Orders D011 07 and D012 07, which sets a goal of reducing water use from 2007 levels by 10% on or before June 30, 2012. At this time, UCCS is behind on achieving this goal, as shown in the chart below: