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University of New Mexico earns EPA award for saving energy

Release Date: 06/06/2008
Contact Information: Dave Bary or Tressa Tillman at 214-665-2200 or r6press@epa.gov

(Dallas, Texas – June 6, 2008) The University of New Mexico has won an Energy Star Combined Heat and Power (CHP) award from the Environmental Protection Agency for reducing its energy use by 20 percent.

CHP, also referred to as cogeneration, is an efficient, clean, and reliable approach to generating power and thermal energy from a single fuel source. By installing a CHP system, a facility can increase operational efficiency and decrease energy costs, while reducing air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.

“Whether at home or at work, being energy-efficient is a smart environmental and economic strategy,” said EPA Regional Administrator Richard E. Greene. “EPA is pleased to recognize committed organizations like the University of New Mexico that are making CHP and other green technologies a fundamental part of how they do business.”

EPA recognized the university for its natural gas-fired CHP system at the Ford Utilities Center. Part of a major energy infrastructure upgrade project, the CHP system supplies the campus with roughly one-third of its total electricity demand and produces steam to help meet the space heating, space cooling, and domestic hot water production needs of more than 25,000 students, staff, and faculty. The CHP system runs with an operating efficiency of almost 65 percent and requires 20 percent less fuel than typical alternatives.

In addition to the University of News Mexico, EPA recognized two other CHP award winners: the Calpine Columbia Energy Center in Gaston, South Carolina, and the Verizon Garden City Fuel Cell Project in Garden City, New York.

Since 1999, EPA has given the Energy Star CHP Award to recognize organizations and institutions that install exceptionally efficient CHP systems. EPA's CHP Partnership seeks to reduce the environmental impact of power generation. EPA works closely with energy users, the CHP industry, state and local governments, and other stakeholders to support the development of new projects that have significant energy, environmental, and economic benefits. The program plays a vital role in efforts to achieve a collaborative, public-private goal of doubling the capacity of CHP in the United States to 92 gigawatts (GW) by 2010.

Additional information about CHP, the Energy Star CHP Award, and the EPA CHP Partnership is available at https://www.epa.gov/chp.

To learn more about activities in EPA Region 6, please visit https://www.epa.gov/region6.