Academic Division and the College at Wise.
The University is committed to promoting energy conservation and efficiency, which can have a significant impact on the University’s greenhouse gas emissions and the use of non-renewable resources. In addition to the environmental benefits, energy conservation and efficiency decrease operational costs.
The University of Virginia Energy Management and Sustainability Policy provides guidelines and procedures that foster energy conservation, efficiency and environmental stewardship with the goal of reducing energy usage, cost, and environmental impact including greenhouse gas emissions. While this policy is recommended for facilities that are leased by the University from other property owners, some aspects of this policy may not be applicable since operation, design and maintenance of these buildings are outside University control.
Purchased fuels and the energy and utilities derived from them.
Initiatives and efforts aimed at achieving a reduction in energy usage and waste.
The use of equipment that requires less energy to operate.
Activities that foster energy conservation, energy efficiency, sustainability, and environmental stewardship.
Emissions which occur during the combustion of fossil fuels such as natural gas, fuel oil, diesel, gasoline, kerosene, propane, and coal. These are typically calculated based on metric tons of equivalent carbon dioxide (MTeCO2).
University faculty, staff, and students will make every effort, collectively and individually, to assist the University in its goals to lower energy consumption, reduce expenditures on energy, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. For example, if electricity usage at the University could be reduced by just 10% through everyone committing to doing the simple actions listed below, the University’s annual carbon emissions could be reduced by almost 18,500 tons and its electricity bill by over $2.1 million based on the FY 09 cost of power.
The Sustainability Programs Manager in the Energy & Utilities Department, working with faculty, staff, and students, ensures that sustainability initiatives related to energy conservation and energy efficiency in facilities meet the needs of the University.
Season | Temperature Range Occupied Periods |
Temperature Setpoint Unoccupied Periods |
Winter (Heating) | 67°F - 71°F | 55°F |
Summer (Cooling) | 72°F - 76°F | 85°F |
Note: Buildings that use air conditioning systems for humidity control may be set to as low as 68˚F in the summer to minimize the use of energy that is needed to reheat the air for comfort.
Measures to Reduce Energy Use:
Actions that assist the University in energy management include, but are not limited to, the following:
Sustainability Committee:
The President has established a Sustainability Committee comprised of faculty, staff and students. This committee provides recommendations on all aspects of sustainability at UVA including environmental impact, community outreach and communications, academic/schools initiatives, policies and procedures, and related issues.
Compliance with Policy:
Failure to comply with the requirements of this policy may result in disciplinary action up to and including termination or expulsion in accordance with relevant University policies.
Questions about this policy should be directed to the Energy and Utilities Department or Facilities Management.