Political Context

Policy makers around the world have been taking note at the effects of climate change, and many have banded together in a collective effort to promote renewable energy in order to prevent further damage. In 2015, countries in the UNFCCC agreed to pursue sustainable initiatives to keep temperature increases this century under 2℃ from pre-industrial, with the ultimate goal of keeping this increase under 1.5℃ (United Nations, 2015). United States recently backed out of this agreement after the election of President Trump, however the US government still has multiple initiatives in place to require renewable energy production. Many states have renewable portfolio standards in place that lay out a plan to increase the percentage of renewable energy production out of total energy production. Pennsylvania enacted the Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards Act in 2004, which required 18% of all energy generated come from renewable sources by 2021. The program also has a seperate standard for solar PV, in which the production of solar PV energy will increase on a yearly basis. In 2017, all electric distribution companies and electric generation suppliers in Pennsylvania met the .2933% solar PV compliance percentage (Pennsylvania Public Utilities Commision, 2017). Despite the partisan differences in the views on the severity of climate change, actions are in still in place throughout the US to mitigate the risks.

Federal, state and local incentives on renewable energy make it more feasible for Lafayette to invest in renewables. At the state level, Pennsylvania has a goal to have a 30 GW solar capacity by the year 2030, which would make up about 10% of the states’ energy usage (Althoff & Altenburg, 2018). In addition to the state initiative the federal government offers tax credits that would promote solar power at Lafayette. As of 2006, the federal government has offered a tax credit of 30% for installation of solar power systems. The Investment Tax Credit (ITC) gradually starts to decrease in the next few years. In 2020, the credit will go down to 26% and further decrease to 22% in 2021 (Althoff & Altenburg, 2018). After 2021 the credit rate will remain at 10% for the foreseeable future. Lafayette will unlikely be able to take advantage of this offer as the rebate does not apply to non-profit organizations. If Lafayette is able to take advantage of this credit, they would need to purchase the solar power system in the year they plan on receiving the credit. Solar panels would also qualify for accelerated depreciation, which would further the savings for Lafayette by increasing the net present worth of the depreciation of the solar panels. By increase the net present worth of the depreciation on the solar panels, the school is lowering their taxable income, decreasing the amount they would pay in taxes. This program is planned on being phased out over the next few years unless it is renewed by Congress. Overall, if the College is not able to act soon it will likely not be able to take advantage of these federal incentives.

        At the state level most of the legislation promoting solar power is geared towards residential consumers. Act 129, passed in 2008, is a major state initiative to increase the energy efficiency of appliances in Pennsylvania (KEEA, 2016). Act 129, also known as the Keystone Energy Alliance, consists of each of Pennsylvania’s seven energy companies collectively requiring themselves to reduce energy usage within the state. While this program is designed for energy companies to increase their state energy efficiency and create jobs in Pennsylvania, it may be possible for Lafayette to partner with their energy provider as part of this program to potentially help fund or operate their own renewable energy project. Pending on whether the state decides to allocate funding towards environmental initiatives, these state programs could either see their funding reduced or other renewable promotions could arise. At this point the federal legislation would be the primary driver, due to their expiring tax credit programs.

Local regulations regarding the spacing of solar panels could have a significant impact on the feasibility of some of microgrid options for Lafayette, and thus the decision-making process regarding the Climate Action Plan. In a process called net-metering, the college would be able to sell the renewable energy produced from the solar panels back to the UGI’s (Lafayette’s energy provider) macrogrid, and in return the college would receive billing credits based on the amount of energy sold (UGI, 2016). In order to offset the campus’s energy usage, 90 acres of solar PV (photovoltaic) panels would need to be built across Metzgar. However, while Lafayette currently owns over 90 acres of land where solar panels could be installed, Pennsylvania code requires renewable energy sources to be within 2 miles of the boundaries of the customer-generator’s property. Metzgar is technically not a part of the customer-generator’s property, therefore it must be within two miles of campus in order to receive billing credits from net-metering. This regulation poses a problem for the implementation of a microgrid in which solar PV panels would be installed at Metzgar to power the main campus, as Metzgar is approximately 2.15 miles from that main campus (Google Earth, 2018). These regulations make it unlikely that a microgrid using solar to power the campus would be a feasible option. Another particular policy issue with constructing solar panels at Metzgar is the resulting glare from the panels that would impact the neighboring airport. The glare from the reflection of the panels could impair pilots as they try to land. A study has already been done on the fields at the Metzgar Field Complex to assess whether photovoltaic cells would distract pilot trying to land at the adjacent airport. (Fechik-Kirk & DeSalvo, 2018) The acceptable area are shown in the figure.

Any solar PV panels built on campus, such as the ones that can be built on Kirby Sports Center, must fall in line with Easton regulations. Solar PV panels must be implanted safely on rooftops. Chapter 7 of the Easton Zoning Regulations requires that materials, colors, textures, and landscaping of these panels blend into the existing infrastructure as much as reasonably possible. With low-slope roofs, such as the roof on Kirby sports center, panels must be mounted with enough setback so that the panel are not visible by individuals on the ground. Steep-slope roofs require that the panels are not visible from the street (City of Easton, n.d.). These regulations should not pose as a roadblock for the implementation of solar on campus, as the Kirby Sports Center roof layout is flat.

The use of the Metzger space will be a large topic of discussion, as the college is considering alternative uses of the large amount of space. Currently, Metzger has about 220 acres of space, with 90 acres used for athletics and 80 acres used for the adjacent farm owned by the college. Filling out 90 acres of solar would require the college to displace the local farm. Without the net-metering, commodity costs would be extremely high, making the option to power Lafayette’s current campus with solar from Metzger. These estimates also do not include the colleges plans to expand in the future, such as the Rockwell Integrated Science Center and the proposed freshman housing expansion. Even more PV panels would need to be constructed to accommodate these expansion plans (Ferretti, 2018). An alternative that the Board is currently considering is to reforest the adjacent farmland in order to decrease the college’s carbon footprint. This is a sensible option, as solar PV panels used to power the campus does not fit with energy regulations and expansion policies.

The Climate Action Plan and the goal of carbon neutrality itself could be quite limiting. The most feasible source of energy currently would be implementing a combined heat and power microgrid. The current steam powered generator could incorporate into a CHP microgrid, making a CHP microgrid a lot more feasible to implement. This proposed CHP microgrid using the current steam generator at the college would be sufficient to power Anderson Courtyard.

The college will have to weigh the benefits of a more feasible non-renewable microgrid, which will not help with Lafayette’s Climate Action Plan, and a less feasible renewable microgrid, which could offset Lafayette’s emissions. A microgrid comprised of solar energy is the more enticing option as it is completely renewable, however doubts still remain over the practicality of implementing solar. Relative to solar PV, CHP may be the less attractive option when it comes to environmental initiatives, however it will save the college a significant amount of money and energy. The tradeoff between carbon-neutrality and feasibility is going to be a key factor in the decision making process on which microgrid option to choose, and whether a microgrid should be chosen to move forward with the Climate Action Plan. There have been plans in the past to create a non-renewable microgrid solely for emergency generation. (Ferretti, 2018) While emergency generation is essential to a school with thousands of students, the school would be missing an opportunity to take control of Lafayette’s emissions.

For students at Lafayette creating a microgrid could be an educational experience both in its existence and with a potential course on renewable energy. By being exposed to localized sources of energy, students will have the opportunity to gain familiarity with energy usage, the grid, and how these systems. There is often a disconnect between society and the technical aspects of energy usage, and this is seemingly because there is no need for individuals to understand these systems in order to continue with their daily lives. It is not necessary for an individual to understand the nuances of electrical engineering in order to plug in a toaster, however familiarity with the electrical principles is key to understanding how many technologies operate and how society can work towards more sustainable energy. Not only are students gaining exposure to basic energy principles, they are also gaining exposure to to renewable energy generation. Having renewable energy generation would allow students to have exposure not only to renewable energy in person but get a sense of how the larger energy system works. This potential benefit, while not specifically calculable, would increase the learning opportunities students have, particularly those in the engineering department (Hayes, 2018). Many students at Lafayette also value sustainability, as seen by the numerous student organizations that promote sustainability on campus. For example, LEAP and Eco Reps on campus promote a more sustainable Lafayette and giving these students a tangible example of renewable energy.

        Having a renewable energy source at Lafayette would also make the school more appealing for prospective students. If Lafayette was to become more renewable, students would see Lafayette on the same level they see other schools with similar initiatives. A renewable microgrid would make Lafayette competitive with school like Trinity College and Dickinson College that have already established microgrids on their respective campuses (Hayes, 2018).

        Another benefit Lafayette students could get from a microgrid is energy independence. In past years—such as 2012 with Hurricane Sandy and a 2016 blackout—Lafayette College has been susceptible to power outages campus wide (Ferretti, 2018). With the school becoming an increasingly global community, it is not feasible to ask all students to go home in the event of a power outage on campus. While this would not necessarily be estimable on a monetary basis, there is value to be able to provide all students with electricity and hot water independent of a larger electricity grid that is more susceptible to power outages.

Recently, Lafayette has considered implementing a microgrid in the past, however the initiative was unsuccessful. The college attempted to implement a CHP microgrid that would incorporate natural gas, thus this microgrid was focused on energy savings rather than sustainable energy sources. The proposal gained traction with the Board of Trustees, however it ultimately failed. UGI, the primary energy provider for the college, could not supply big enough pipes at a cost in which the college would still earn a significant return, as the existing infrastructure was inadequate. While the Board of Trustees has sufficient funding for the projects within the Climate Action Plan, sufficient financial return on the initial investment is necessary for any project to be implemented (Ferretti, 2018).

At various levels of policy making, emissions are being increasingly treated as a negative externality that policy is trying to reduce. The goal of policy makers in general seems to be to incentivize more renewable energy to make up for the energy market not investing in renewable resources enough to decrease greenhouse gas emissions. While Lafayette will not be directly affected by some of the policies incentivizing renewables, the momentum of renewable sources of energy provides Lafayette an opportunity to take advantage of other political actors pushing more sustainable energy. Microgrids also further decentralization, which is becoming more prominent as a whole (Resnick, 2002). By establishing a microgrid, Lafayette would become energy independent and following the lead of many political actors seeking to reduce CO2 emissions.