Energy Master Plan needed

staff

Editorial Board

Issue: SDSU’s coal plant has come under scrutiny by some on campus.

SDSU’s Sierra Club has recently become very vocal about the coal plant on campus, expressing the needs for a new form of power on campus. We look forward to hearing the Sierra Club’s solutions and would also like to propose our own vision on how SDSU can handle the matter.

At this point, it’s unrealistic to think that SDSU can immediately switch over to a new energy source. Coal may not be the healthiest or cleanest form of energy, but it is cost-effective. In these economic times of budget cuts, the truth is the bottom line matters. Coal, however, is not a renewable energy source and will not last forever. SDSU must begin looking for a clean, cost-effective, long-term solution.

SDSU developed and is part of the Sun Grant Initiative, an act passed by the United States Congress in 2003 that created an association of five universities tasked with finding alternative energy sources.

Along with this, SDSU recently created the Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability Committee.

Between the Initiative and the ESSC, we would think some sort of alternative to the coal plant would have been proposed or is at the very least being considered.

Yet the administration has not publicly mentioned that they are looking into an alternative energy source for campus. This seems strange, especially with SDSU developing an initiative to do national research about alternative energies.

This administration has developed several master plans. There is the Campus Master Plan, Residential Life and Dining Services Master Plan, and the more recent Athletic Master Plan; why hasn’t an Energy Master Plan been created? This seems like a natural step forward. SDSU should create an Energy Master Plan that, over the period of 10 years, allows for a smooth transition into a new energy source on campus. We believe this is a reasonable time frame for sufficient research and fundraising.

Stance: SDSU must develop an Energy Master Plan for a transition to a clean, cost-effective and healthy energy source on campus.