KANSAN
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY
Vol. 90, No.129
The University of Kansas—Lawrence. Kansas
Tuesday, April 15, 1980
KU looks to wood to ax fuel bill
By GRANT OVERSTAKE
Staff Reporter
KU Expenditures for Electricity and Natural Gas, 1974-79
ELECTRICITY NATURAL GAS
Fiscal year Kilowatt Hours Total Cost Millions of Cubic Feet Total Cost
1974 51,129,215 $ 647,777 536,288 $233,354
1975 51,644,154 832,303 527,781 342,756
1976 49,159,729 1,064,914 498,816 392,345
1977 52,208,714 1,464,177 574,444
1978 61,255,179 1,682,783 560,826 769,879
1979 66,930,193 2,099,048 490,599* 712,296
A problem facing University of Kansas officials is how to cope with skoyorketing electricity and natural gas bills that have increased by more than 30% in the past six years.
*Gas supply for January and February 1979 was cut off
Source: Office of Business Affairs
An answer may be as close as their own book vard
According to William Smith, KU professor of electrical engineering, a plan to use wood chips instead of natural gas to heat the house can be made at the price of natural gas continues to climb.
The cost of converting the University's steam heating system from natural gas fuel to wood chips has been estimated at between $30 million and $50 million. This was considered unimaginable.
"In January of this year the cost of a thousand cubic feet of natural gas was $2.09. Smith said. The cost now is about $1.65, and the close our protected breast even point."
Smith predicted that the plant could be converted before 1985
"Every year from now on we'll be paying more and more for natural gas," he said. "There will be an incentive to switch from coal to gas, because it is large enough some action will be taken."
THE PLAN calls for the construction of two wood-burning boilers that would create 50,000 pounds of steam an hour. They would be used to heat a large portion of the South of Flint Hall. The plant would consume about 200 tons of wood chips daily and up to 400 tons during the worst winter days,
Instead of transporting the wood chips by rail, we were originally looking at it, applauded for its strength in diameter in inches and blow the wood chips by air compressor from the storage facility above.
The storage facility would be constructed somewhere on West Campus, and a source of wood should be easy to find, he said.
"One source would be urban tree removal," Smith said. "We could use trees and limbs cut down in Lawrence and Topela. Now right now they are taking that stuff
to the sanitary land or they just take it out and dump it somewhere. Saw mills and lumber operations, along with cabinets shops, are generating substantial amounts of wood that is just being dumped. The real problem is that -effective collection system for that stuff
THE UNIVERSITY may offer to pay for wood brought to the storage facility he said.
"the city of Lawrence woum be given us give their wood, especially if they heard we were paying or it. Smith said, we should look at our possibility and possibly down the road is the possibility of growing our own. A 6,000-acre forest would be enough to sustain the city."
IN ADDITION to the rising costs of natural gas, Smith said that the existing heating plant was wearing out. Two of the plants were in danger and have life expectancy of 40 years, he said.
Allen Wiechert, director of facilities planning, said that the conversion could come within the decade.
"Anybody dealing with this thing right now is looking through a crystal ball," Wiechert said. "It's kind of hard to guess
what the future looks like. A lot of the things we're studying right now we have to look at when it becomes economically feasible."
The cost of utilities, including water,
food, and rent for the residence, Lawrence
Lawrence campus averages $280,000 a month, according to Martin Jones, associate director of personnel affairs. In 1974 the bills amounted to $355,000.
As expensive as natural gas may be, the cost of heating oil is much worse, as KU officials discovered in January and February 1979 when the Kansas Public Service Gas Company curtailed the school's supply of gas due to high demand from other customers.
"The going price for number six crude oil, which is the crudest you can buy was about 35,000 barrels a day. The coldest days, some 17,000 gallons were consumed. That made for a daily bill of $48,000."
THE DAILY bill for natural gas during January and February, 1980, was about $2,000. Jones said he added that the winter was considerably colder than this year's.
and oil shutoffs, Wiechert and a committee of administrators developed a contingency plan that identified the buildings on campus that could be shut down in case an energy crisis occurs.
The University currently has a 220,000-gallon fuel oil storage capacity and will add another storage tank this summer. Wierch et al. reported that 38 days simply heated oil, he said.
The contingency plan would go into effect if the University is cut off from natural gas, and heating oil becomes scarce. he said.
With the threats three years ago of gas
"It is a standing plan," Wiechcid said. "It took some study to determine what was inside some of these buildings and which ones were not. The buildings and which ones were not. Buildings with animal life in them and buildings with sensitive equipment, along with those buildings that would be necessary to preserve the university will receive the highest priority."
THE LIKELIHOOD of another gas cutoff is slim, Wierch said, because the federal government has acted to move schools and universities into a higher position on the gas priority list. Schools and university new buildings are behind residences and hospitals he said.
Wiechert would not reveal specifics of the plan, saying that some people might be unset by it.
RISKING COSTS and new buildings, which add to the number of cubic feet that need to be lighted and heated, have offset the University's conservation efforts, Jones said. The university's maximum addition and the Makett Hall addition will only add to the gas and electrical woes.
According to Smith, the decision to switch to a wood burning plant rests with the Board of Revents and the Kansas Legislature.
"The Board of Regents won't be able to change the way we educate 1981 or 1982, I don't know. It all depends on how far-sighted the people are. I can't believe they are just going to do something about it," she said.
"But, if I were a betting man, I would give you pretty good odds that it will be done by 1985."
Budget blamed for resignation
By STEVE YOUNG
Staff Reporter and
TOM GRESS
Sports Writer
Tert Anderson, women's track coach, did not want to resign, but did so anyway because she said not enough money had been budgeted for travel to national meets.
Anderson, who will become an assistant student's track coach at the University of Texas next year, said the $2,900 budgeted for a new year was not enough to cover national trips.
And, she said, Athletic Director Bob Weiss spent over two years revenue sports that money from the KU team which has funded travel for national meets in the past, would not be available next week.
Perhaps more money would have been available for women's track and other nonrevenue producing sports if the athletics department overexpended its current fiscal year budget.
Department records made available to the Kansas City Times indicate that the department has spent more than $10,000 in player salaries. The men's basketball and administration.
awan Wachter, interim athletic business manager, said yesterday that audit reports, financial statements, cash disbursements and stock trades would be made able to the Kaspan today.
The financial records show that the team's basketball budget by $5,000, that men's basketball exceeded its $30,000 budget by almost $20,000 and the team's basketball budget by $45,000, both exceeding by $2,000.
Marcum was quoted as saying that the overspending was caused by outdated budgeting procedures, inflation and decreasing rate revenues.
He declined to comment on the Times' store last night.
In her resignation letter, Anderson asked that her salary for next year be used for national travel and that only one full-time coach be hired instead of two.
However, Marcum said that because coaches' salaries came from state funds, they could only be used for that purpose.
"If she wants to look like some martyr,
well, fine," Marcum said last night. "But
her salary can only be used for salaries."
Marcum also said that money could be made available for team members to travel to national meets if necessary.
Marcum also suggested that Anderson might have had other reasons, besides the travel budget, for leaving.
"We'd do everything possible to get them to the meet," he said.
In her resignation letter to Marcum, Anderson said that without national meets she would not be able to keep or attract top athletes.
"With the inadequate travel budget of only $2,900, including national participation, it would be impossible for these national caliber athletes to stay at KU," she said.
"To be able to go to nationals next year, you have to raise money from 'but money' people like Sears and Coors," Anderson said, "but don't want the coaches do that—they will."
Anderson said she asked for Marum's permission to raise money from sponsors to help with travel expenses but that request was denied.
Anderson said that she did not think that raising money from sponsors would make KU look bad, but not being able to pay for it, which hurt the University's reputation.
She added that if she had been allowed to raise money she would not have resigned. She said she bore no resentment toward Marcum or the department.
Marcum said the Williams Fund was the only group allowed to raise funds for the athletic department and he did not want to use sponsors use direct solicitation of sponsors
Although next year's women's track
budget will increase $169 million to $817,000,
it is not the money of the salaries
and scholarships—not operating
of which travel is the largest
single item.
The entire women's track budget could have been supported by part of the money overspent in the football, men's basketball and administration budgets.
KUAC refuses to release certain expense claims and purchase orders, to plain its extra expenses, on the grounds that it is a private corporation and not subject to the laws.
But the corporation receives state money for women's athletics, and questions remain as to its exemption from open records laws.
"It's just not that clear what everybody's rights and responsibilities are," Mike Davis. University general counsel, said.
Craig McCoy, KUAC treasurer and University comproller, blamed the turnover of three athletic business managers since last October for the problems.
Local food stamp program troubled by lack of money
Staff Reporter
By BEN JONES
Unless Congress appropriates money in the budget, Douglas County families will not be able to put food on the table.
"I looks gloomy," Barbara Gaines, an income
Services, said last week. "Congress is going to have
an important meeting tomorrow."
SRS, 319 Perry SL, is the government agency that issues food stamps.
GAINES SAID Congress was scheduled to rec迎来event which gave legislators one month to work on bills.
"Historically," she said, "four months has not been enough time."
The bill, which would raise the ceiling for food
stamp funds for the remainder of this fiscal year has been poured by the Senate but awaits action in a hearing.
Gaines said this year's allotment of food stamp money would run out by June I because of increasing prices.
Susan Beers, a case worker for the Salvation Army, 94 New Hampton St., said that if the bill was not passed by May 15, food stamp benefits for the month would be limited to $20 for July and August would be drastically reduced.
SHE SAID 758 households in Douglas County now received food stamp benefits. The 1,803 people who live in these households bought $70,400 of food last month with the aid of food stamps.
"There is no way city government or agencies in this town could afford $7,400 word of food." Beers
Student needs receive attention during 1980 legislative session
By BLAKE GUMPRECHT
Staff Reporter
The regular session of the Legislature ended last
morning. The regular session of the Legislature will
lawmakers will return April 30 for a three-day clean-
room
Associated Students of Kansas officials, however, had just the opposite opinion.
Critics called the 1960 session the Kansas Legislature one of the least productive in recent years.
"We've never done so well," Craig Templeton, Topeka minister and chairman of ASK's board of directors, said.
The controversial proposal was reported in the Committee last month, but almo't of it being Committee last month, all but doctoning it in the House.
THE LEGISLATURE also voted to increase minimum state student employee salaries from $2.90 to $3.50.
"I would say it was about time," State Sen. Arnold Berman, D-Davance, said. "In the past the department has been so slow."
Perhaps the biggest victory for many students was the defeat of a bill that would have increased the fees on private medical care.
Applications for the positions of editor and business manager for the summer and fall Kansan staffs are available in the School of Journalism office, 105 Flint Halt; the Student Senate office, 106 Flint Halt; the Student offices of student affairs, 248 Strong Hall. The appointee must be turned in at 105 Fly by 6 p.m. thursday.
Kansan jobs open
but has never funded them such that they would track with the federal minimum wage."
An extra $20,000 will be provided from the state general fund for the State Scholarship Program and will also provide for up to 30 additional scholarships.
After considerable bickering, the Legislature also decided to provide an extra $200,000 for state parks.
Also approved as part of the final Regents budget was funding for non-student users of student unions, such as faculty and administrative meetings, which are now partially funded by student activity fees.
A $319,000 appropriation for purchase and installation of a new lighting board for Murphy Hall was approved as the Legislature responded to the request from the University, Regents and the State Fire Marshal.
Capital improvement project for Strong and Flint halls and a proposed $4.7 million library for the University of Kansas Medical Center are still under consideration by a House-Senate Conference Committee.
Acting on a request by Gov. John Carlin and the University, the Legislature voted to provide $733,000 for preliminary and final planning for an addition to Haworth Hall.
FUNDING FOR CAP improvement projects for Haworth and Murray Halls were also approved.
$A$ conference committee is responsible for ironing out differences when the House and Senate differ on $A$.
ASK LOBBIED heavily in favor of a proposed amendment to the Landlord-Tenant Act, designed to force negligent landlords to comply with existing health and safety codes and with their rental
The proposal, which has been considered several times, was passed by a House Committee before debate in the Senate.
See LEGISLATURE page three
Bv BRIAN VON BEVERN
Window dims actors' hopes
Staff Reporter
Despite his own happiness on the stage, actor William Windsom told a crowd of radio and television students yesterday that he not recommend acting to anyone else.
Windom was in town to do his "Win dom Does Thurber" show last night.
"Eighty percent unemployment is normal in my union. I don't recommend it to anyone."
"There are 25,000 people in the Screen Actor's Guild, and 90 percent of them make less than $7,500 a year," he said. "A majority percent make less than $2,000 a year."
"What does it take for Bo Derek to be successful, more than skill, it will take it?" you ask. "you're a dog, you then'll fade after a while. But if you blossom from
BESIDES THAT, he said potential stars should learn public speaking, and "get a job - any job."
"Forget the long weekends and the vacation in Vail your daddy promised you," he said. "If you can get a job on Monday, you're going to work." But work, even if it is in McDonald's.
"Chiptaz is what you need. You need a little hustle to make it happen to you. The technology that allowed television was gradually moving up in the ranks of cars and about everything else.
He said the Academy Awards were "supposed to be the voice of the workers, but I think it's the voice of the kiss-assert."
Windom said he did not write any of the Thurber show.
HE SAID the origins of the Thurber show was in the television show 'My World and Welcome to IT,' based on a book written for which he won an Emmy Award.
He said he got involved with the television show through a telephone call.
"They called me up and said 'Bill, you're the only one we thought of for this part,' he said. "Have you girls ever called up on the night before a room?"
But he said he was happy with his life as an actor.
"I started if because I thought it would be easy and fun. I still think it's easy and fun. So I was right."
BEN BIGLER/Kansan staff
Whimsical Windom
William Winden, Broadway, movie and television actor, signs autographs for admiring students after talking to a class yesterday afternoon. Winden performed his one-man-show, "Wonder Thurber," last night in