Hello all!

Just wanted to inform everyone about something wonderful happening within the community that YOU can contribute to,

In conjunction with February National Kindness Week and March National Nutrition Month a community volunteer intitiative has been developed called the Peanut Butter Project.

Please donate a jar of scrumptious peanut butter to the Peanut Butter Project, which will benefit children in our community who are in need of a nutritious food staple.

Drop jars of peanut butter off at the “Peanut Butter Drop-Off” box located in the Sustainability Office at BSU by March 31st 2012.

Proudly sponsored by:
Paul Bunyan Mall, Bemidji Community Food Shelf, Lueken’s Village Foods North & South, Marketplace Food, Harmony Natural Food Coop, Area Schools/Churches, Paul Bunyan Broadcasting, Girl Scout Troop 041, and all P.B. Recruiters.

Right now, there is a bill (Minnesota House File 389) moving through the Legislature that if it get passed, it will weaken local government control.  So for example, if a massive or controversial project (i.e. factory farm, large shopping center, or frac sand mines) is being proposed, the local citizens of that area won’t be able to have a voice regarding that proposed project.

By taking away the voices of the people, there’s a greater chance of environmental destruction and social injustices.

Here is more detail on the subject:  http://www.startribune.com/politics/statelocal/139927613.html

What do you stand for?

Dear Readers,
I received an email from Sustainability Coordinator Erika Bailey Johnson regarding water waste in the athletic training program that was sent from the head athletic trainer Bill Crews. He was wondering if there was a technology that could reduce water consumption because the two old conventional steel tubs used about 200 gallons of water per day. In order to keep the water cool for ice therapy, an old ice machine was used. So I have been working on this project with my colleague for about 5 months and found out that water was not the only issue. The product that we found to reduce water use and energy costs is called Cold Tub. This product is a cold and hot therapy used for athletic treatment. This product is highly affective for swollen joints, and reducing lactic acid which can help speed recovery time for athletes.
We found out that the energy to make ice for the conventional steel tubs using an older ice machine runs on 16 kWh, so for one year the cost would be about $9,110.40 to run that old ice machine. Where as the Cold Tub is running at .8 kWh the cost for one year to run is about $160.16. So the total savings on energy of this product is about $8,950.24. Not only is there an energy savings, but a cost reduction for needing less water. The water and sewer savings for the Cold Tub is about $397.01. We are now at the stage of setting the equipment up at the training facility in the Rec Center. The sustainability aspect is that this product saves Bemidji State University about $9,347.25 dollars a year on energy and water. The student Green Fee contributed $5000 dollars of this $20,000 project.

Peace, Love, and Joy

Derek Faith

Hello everyone!

Starting today The Campus Conservation Nationals, a national energy saving competition across college campuses, begins!  BSU is competing against over 170 different universities across the country and it lasts until February 24th.  We are one of few campuses in Minnesota competing, along with St. Ben’s and Macalester.  Along with this, there is an energy saving competition between all of the residential dorms on campus.  The winning dorm receives $300, a party, and in addition ten individuals will win a energy-saving prize as well.  The Sustainability Office and the student organization Students for the Environment are working to reduce BSU’s carbon footprint through competitions like these.

Found out that Josh Fox, the director of the impacting documentary Gasland, was arrested February 1st for trying to film a Congress committee meeting during their discussion on the fracking issue in Ohio.

Check it out