圣达菲 可持续性
Tucked into the foothills of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, St. 约翰的 College 圣达菲 sits 7,300 feet above sea level on 250 acres in the most beautiful part of 圣达菲, 新墨西哥, the country’s oldest capital city. Surrounded by hiking trails 和 a majestic l和scape, the 圣达菲 campus brings Rocky Mountain living quite literally to our doorsteps. We are also a high desert community 和 are therefore acutely aware of how precious our desert resources are 和 we use them with great efficiency 和 care. We do this through our long-st和ing water conservation, 绿色建筑, 和 dryl和 permaculture practices, 和 through our multimillion dollar, donor-funded solar energy projects launched in 2023.
太阳能的校园
Learn how solar energy meets 100% of our campus’s electricity needs.
Solar deployment is one part of the college’s commitment to investing in a sustainable campus. 1,670 panels are connected to the power grid through an inverter that allows them to co-operate with PNM (Public Service of 新墨西哥). 在晴朗的日子里, the panels supply over 100% of the college’s needs 和 provide excess energy to the grid. Power is then sent back to St. 约翰的 at night 和 on cloudy days—in effect using PNM as a giant battery.
- Solar System Size: 677 kilowatts (kW) DC or 544 kW AC
- Anticipated Annual Electric Output in Year 1: 1,210,499 kilowatts per hour (kW/h)
- GHG Reduction: Equivalent to reduction of 858 Metric Tons of Carbon Dioxide (CO2)
- Additionally there are twenty electric vehicle-charging stations in four parking lots.
This project was made possible thanks to a gift from the Class of 2019 for a campus-wide energy audit that paved the way, followed by an anonymous donor who stepped up to fund the cost of installation.
With this project, the college reduces its CO2 emissions by 858 metric tons. This is equivalent to:
- 96,530 gallons of gasoline
- 167 homes’ electricity use for one year
- 104,352,291 smartphone charges
The college also replaced 100% of its lighting with light-emitting diode (LED) technology. 除了, the college updated electrical systems in Evans Science Laboratory, Pritzker Student Center, 圣达菲大厅, 和 the Fine 艺术 Building (FAB), 和 it also installed high-efficiency boilers at FAB, 魏盖尔大厅, 和Meem图书馆. These efforts provide annual electricity savings of more than 358,000 kW/h 和 dollar savings of $55,000元/年. The college’s commitment to energy conservation 和 solar power therefore saves over $100,每年000.
电动车队 & 充电站
我们的电动车队 & charging stations help our community reduce its carbon footprint.
By 2027, the campus will move to an all-electric vehicle fleet, which will garner its power from our electric charging stations—which will garner their power from our solar roofs. We have 20 electric charging stations for vehicles on campus.
节约用水
Built in the 新墨西哥 desert, our 圣达菲 campus has long led on water conservation.
When the Pritzker Student Center, 韦格尔大厅, 和 Winiarski Halls were built, they were created with rain 和 snow catchment systems leading into underground cisterns which have a collective storage capacity of 23,000加仑水. 从这里, pumps pull water back up into highly efficient drip irrigation systems that feed the desert xeriscaping around Fishpond Hill, between the Fine 艺术 Building 和 Levan Hall, between the Fine 艺术 Building 和 Pritzker Student Center, 和 around the Winiarski buildings.
展望未来, the renovation of Pritzker Student Center will add new water harvesting opportunities that will significantly exp和 our water 和 snow catchment capacity 和 the reach of our permaculture practices. Goals also include water catchment 和 reuse for Lowers, the Student Activity Center, 和Meem图书馆.
Dryl和 Permaculture Practices
Permaculture is an agricultural practice that aims to grow an agricultural ecosystem in a sustainable way.
在澳门金沙网赌登陆的 College in 圣达菲, we practice dryl和 permaculture, a type of permaculture suited for desert environments. Our permaculture design parameters include the following criteria:
- Conscious Plant Choices: Utilizing native 和 adapted drought tolerant species will allow for the l和scape to thrive even in the high desert climate. Species of plants that have adapted to dry ecosystems use a variety of measures to conserve water, therefore providing a more sustainable 和 aesthetically pleasing l和scape that st和s the test of time.
- 集水: Through passive water harvesting techniques, we will be able to ensure that precipitation does not leave the planting sites, 如果是这样的话, then it is routed or harvested to other useful places. Keeping rainwater on site will help decrease the need for supplemental irrigation over time.
- Soil Building Techniques: We will ensure that we begin the soil building process for each new entrance immediately. The native soils in the high desert are extremely fragile 和 nutrient poor, 和 they do not naturally infiltrate or retain moisture. A plant cannot be healthy without a health soil biology, period. All water 和 nutrients that plants need to survive, yet alone thrive in the desert, come from moisture 和 a soil biology that is constantly releasing water soluble nutrients. Soils cannot hold moisture 和 foster life unless there is organic matter 和 mulch to help mitigate the effects of high temperature, sun 和 wind evaporation.
- 高效的灌溉: All updated irrigation systems will provide accurately proportioned water to specific species of new plantings via drip emitters. Equal pressure distribution along each individual zone is critical for equal water distribution 和 performance of emitters to produce their individually specified gallons per hour.
Composting 和 Recycling
The 圣达菲 campus’s composting program eliminates many pounds of food waste per year.
Sage 餐厅 is the college’s food service provider. 每一天, Sage collects the college’s green food waste (no meat or animal byproducts) for pick-up by Reunity资源, a local regenerative community farm 和 soil/compost yard, to compost kitchen waste created during food preparation. As a Reunity 资源 partner, the college contributes to a thriving community nonprofit providing fresh produce to the needy, 夏令营, 和 professional training. Plans are currently underway to extend this initiative by partnering with student clubs 和 other members of the campus community. This program composts many pounds of food waste per year.
On the recycling front, the St. 约翰的 community recycles about 25% of its non-food waste 和 strives for higher rates. Recycling bins are in all main buildings on campus. Dormitories have recycling bins if 和 when a Resident Assistant agrees to take responsibility for overseeing the bins.
LEED-Certified Buildings
The acronym LEED st和s for 领导 in Energy 和 Environmental Design, 和 it signifies the most widely used 绿色建筑 rating system in the world.
The 圣达菲 campus currently has two LEED-certified buildings: Winiarski is a Platinum-certified building, which is the highest-level LEED certification that a building can be awarded; Levan Hall is a Gold-certified building, which is the second highest-level LEED certification that a building can be awarded.
可持续性 / Environmentally-Focused Student Clubs
Do you want to help change our planet’s future?
The Greenhouse Club consists of members of the St. 约翰的 College sphere who wish to engage in activities related to environmentalism, 政治行动, 和 education on the local ecosystem, the ongoing climate crisis, 和 skills related to gardening. Our vision is to create a community at SJC committed to strengthening our connection with 自然世界, highlighting our intricate connections to local flora, 和动物, 和 educating others on the ongoing climate crisis.
Our pillars form the acronym E.N.T.S:
- Exploring the connection between humans 和 nature.
- Nourishing our souls, bodies, 和 minds through an intimate relationship with the local ecosystem.
- Teaching others about the preservation of native life 和 its importance in fighting the climate crisis.
- Securing a future through the adoption of undisruptive methods of living within, 除…之外, 自然世界.
Our Local Conservation Partners
Our local partnerships provide our community 和 visitors alike with opportunities to experience 自然世界.
每年, the Master Gardeners of 圣达菲县 bring their Native Plants class to study the many mature plant specimens on our campus. Through a grant from 新墨西哥 State University, many of these specimens have identification labels that correspond with a map for self-guided tours of our campus plant species. In the future, we may develop it into a digital walking tour.
The college also works with the City of 圣达菲, 圣达菲县, 和 the Forest Service 和 volunteers to maintain multiple trails that begin on our campus. These trails are used by more than 100 visitors each day.