Winter closure exceeds expectations for energy savings

The two-week winter shutdown in December did more than give staff and faculty a welcome change of pace. The biggest benefit of the shutdown, which started as a voluntary program in 2001 and has been mandatory since 2003, has been to save on energy. The Office of Sustainability’s goal for the 2010 winter closure was to increase energy and cost savings from the 2009 shutdown by at least 10 percent. The campus exceeded that goal and achieved the following savings:

• 1.4 million kilowatt-hours of electricity (48 percent increase from 2009)
• 3.8 million pounds of steam (87 percent increase from 2009)
• $202,000 in operating costs (54 percent increase from 2009)
• 778 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions avoided (63 percent increase from 2009)

Read the full announcement on the Sustainable Stanford website.