Bennington College wants to cut oil use by burning wood

BENNINGTON, Vt. --Bennington College is moving to cut its emissions of fossil fuel-generated greenhouse gases and to save money by moving from oil to wood chips for most of its heating.

The college plans to invest $2.5 million in a new boiler that will heat most campus buildings by next winter, said Joan Goodrich, the college's vice president for planning and special projects.

The college follows dozens of public school districts in Vermont that have seen significant financial savings from similar installations. Leland and Gray Union High School in Townshend cut its annual heating bill by about $40,000 after making the switch, according to the Vermont Department of Public Service.

Supporters of wood chip heating say it is "carbon-neutral," in that carbon released when trees are burned is absorbed when new trees are planted or seed naturally to replace them. The DPS Web site says most wood chips in Vermont come from mill waste or from culling low-grade trees from the state's forests.

Goodrich said the college would be switching the entire campus to wood chip heating, but some of its buildings are not tied it to its central heating system.

Bennington's facilities chief, Bill Tronson, said the boiler will be installed in its own building. Swapping out the boiler is all that's needed; the schools' steam system for distributing heat can work either with wood chips or oil, he said.

The college expects to cut its oil use from 440,000 gallons in the 2004-2005 heating season to 32,000 in the 2007-2008 season.

Goodrich said wood chips are cheaper than oil, meaning, "The conversion costs will pay for themselves within seven years."

The switch is part of the college's ongoing effort to reduce its environmental impacts, Goodrich said. A new student center that opened in October includes passive cooling methods and recycled materials.

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Information from: Bennington Banner, http://www.benningtonbanner.com