BOSTON — Citizens Energy Corporation Chairman and President Joseph P. Kennedy II joined Pine Manor College President Gloria Nemerowicz today to announce a partnership between the non-profit energy company and the liberal arts college to help guide the college toward reducing its carbon footprint while saving on energy bills.
Pine Manor is the first college to partner with the energy services division of Citizens Energy. Citizens will advise the college on how to use energy and water resources more efficiently across its 60-acre campus in Chestnut Hill, Mass. Citizens initial assessment of Pine Manor includes energy and water usage audits to identify retrofitting opportunities on 15 campus buildings with the aim to reduce energy costs by more than 20 percent.
«Energy efficiency and conservation go hand in hand with higher education,» said Joseph P. Kennedy II, Chairman and President of Citizens Energy Corporation. «By reducing energy usage and costs, Pine Manor will have more resources available to meet its educational mission while at the same time reducing its environmental impact.»
In addition to energy efficiency and conservation improvements, Citizens and Pine Manor have begun assessing the integration of solar photovoltaic systems on several campus buildings.
«Pine Manor is proud to be the first college partnering with Citizens in this program,» said College President Gloria Nemerowicz. «These efforts to reduce our carbon footprint and operate this institution in the most earth-friendly manner reinforce the commitment of our faculty, staff and students to our mission of social responsibility.»
The first phase of the project will include installation of energy efficient equipment and plumbing, along with state of the art building management systems designed to help reduce operating costs by saving on energy consumption.
As part of the program, Citizens will work with student interns from Pine Manor who will assist with program design and implementation.
Facility upgrades include improvements to the following:
Lighting systems
Boiler and steam systems
Heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems
Advanced building controls
Plumbing systems
Work will begin during the summer and fall of 2008 allowing Pine Manor to begin marking energy savings by 2009.
