July 27, 2010
On July 20 St. John’s University received notice of an award of
a $1 million grant for energy conservation projects. Records to
date show this grant to be the largest award issued to a university
in New York State under the federal American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009.
"Our team put together a good proposal" says Brij Anand, Vice
President for Facilities at St. John’s. "The awards are based on
projects that meet the required criteria, ranging from cost sharing
and energy savings to clean air attainment and projects that are
shovel-ready."
The winning proposal was created through the synergy and
integration of the Facilities and Business Affairs Offices, under
the direction of Brij Anand and the University’s Controller,
Anthony Macaluso. Associate Controller, Bernadette Lavin and
Director of Energy and Environmental Conservation, Tom Goldsmith,
oversaw the completion of a comprehensive Investment-Grade Energy
and Water Audit to ensure St. John’s energy conservation projects
would stand out among competitors in applying for the grant.
"The teaming up of financing and facility knowledge was the
cornerstone to build the proposal" says Lavin. "Organizing bits of
audit data along with knowledge of the ARRA program criteria
provided by NYSERDA (New York State Energy Research and Development
Authority) made for a good proposal."
The ARRA funds will be matched by St. John’s own funds and be
allocated specifically for upgrades to lighting systems, replacing
insulation on mechanical systems and installation of new exhaust
air system controls. The annual benefits for this project are
estimated to reduce greenhouse gases by 3.5 million pounds of
carbon dioxide, 6.7 thousand pounds of sulfur oxide, and 119
thousand pounds of noxious oxides. Annual utility costs will be
reduced by $500,000.
The current federal stimulus program began back in early
December 2008 when then President-Elect Obama met with state
governors to discuss challenges and solutions facing the nation,
and has evolved into the largest stimulus program in our nation’s
history, promoting economic recovery, energy independence and
strong environmental stewardship. Main criteria for construction
under ARRA requirements include paying prevailing wage rates and
using products manufactured in the United States.
ARRA funds allocated toward energy efficiency and renewal energy
projects are administered through the U.S. Department of Energy
(DOE), State Energy Program (SEP) and New York State Energy
Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA). To date NYSERDA has
administered three rounds of SEP funds, awarding $74 million to
municipalities, schools, hospitals, not-for -profits and colleges
and universities.
This ARRA award will help St. John’s fund its Energy Capital
Master Plan – estimated at $22.5 million and approved by the
University’s Board of Trustees in March 2010. This plan, along with
other operational improvements, represents St. John’s strategy to
achieve its commitment to Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s Mayoral
Challenge to reduce carbon emissions by 30 percent by the year 2017
and live up to the partnership St. John’s made with the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency – a voluntary commitment to show
continuous improvement towards environmental stewardship from 2008
through 2013.
For media inquiries, please contact Elizabeth Reilly, Associate
Director of Media Relations at St. John’s University, by calling
(718) 990-5789, or by e-mail to reillye@stjohns.edu.