State funding will help UB install thermal energy network

UB is set to receive critical funding from New York State as part of the state’s efforts to transition to clean energy sources and make its public college and university campuses greener, more resilient to severe weather and more energy-efficient.

Gov. Kathy Hochul on Feb. 12 announced $150 million in funding for SUNY and CUNY campuses from New York State’s $4.2 billion Clean Water, Clean Air and Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act of 2022.

UB’s portion, which totals $12 million, will go toward installation of a thermal energy network.

“New York’s higher education institutions play a significant role in leading by example to help advance a cleaner, greener future,” Hochul said. “The $150 million in new investments from the Environmental Bond Act will allow SUNY and CUNY to take a significant step forward in electrifying campuses and integrating cleaner energy solutions to reduce pollution and help New York’s colleges become more energy efficient.”

“With thanks to Gov. Hochul, SUNY’s campuses are leading the way in advancing sustainability and addressing climate change,” said SUNY Chancellor John B. King Jr. “This bond act funding for four SUNY projects will help achieve New York State’s ambitious decarbonization goals and build a more sustainable future.”

With its share of the funding, UB will construct the first of many energy hubs, all of which are needed to phase out fossil fuel-based systems and replace aging, lower-efficiency systems with on-site electrical systems that lower greenhouse gas and other pollutants and improve operating efficiencies. The first high-efficiency energy hub will service a network of up to five buildings on the South Campus surrounding Parker Hall.

“This investment reinforces our work in decarbonizing UB and creating world-class learning and research space that also reinforces our university’s value of taking responsibility for our carbon emissions,” said Laura Hubbard, vice president for finance and administration. “We thank Gov. Hochul and the overwhelming amount of voters who passed the Clean Water, Clean Air and Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act that supports this work.”

The university has made significant strides since implementing its updated climate action plan, UB 10 in 10, including reducing its carbon footprint by approximately 30%, largely by moving its electricity to renewable sources both on and off campus.

But UB’s biggest challenge remains: decarbonizing the natural gas the university uses to heat its 13 million gross square feet of space and 200 buildings.

In fall 2023 UB completed its South Campus Clean Energy Master Plan, which advances a detailed blueprint of how 67 buildings will be adapted, the thermal network that will be created and the funding and training needed to make it happen. Implementation of this plan is already taking place, with full renovations of both Crosby and Foster halls, transforming them into state-of-the-art teaching and research facilities with no scope 1 or 2 carbon emissions.

The university also launched a Clean Energy Master Plan process for the North Campus in early 2024. The work has closely examined the current state of all electrical and heating infrastructure across 125 buildings and has proposed an innovative strategy to leverage the existing campus-wide chilled water loop and new heat pump clusters and plants that would augment the system.

This approach will lead to cost savings, decreased campus disruption, a quicker implementation timeline and a net reduction of another 30% of UB’s carbon footprint.