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THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2014
PAGE 3A
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CAMPUS
University looks to modernize heating systems
TERRI HARVEY
news@kansan.com
Many students complain that the temperatures of classrooms across campus are inconsistent and uncomfortable. Some buildings are too cold, others are too warm and it seems that not many of them are just right. The extreme temperatures make it difficult for some students to concentrate.
"The classrooms would be so cold that I wouldn't be able to take off my coat. I was very uncomfortable." said Lynna Pham, a freshman from Witchita.
Jay Phillips, director of Facilities Services, said that the simplest solution to the problem of complaints is for students and faculty to file facility reports when the temperatures seem unbearable.
However, some of the temperature issues are not so simple to solve. The University operates on a seasonal heating and cooling system that doesn't
allow for constant change to coincide with the volatile Kansas weather.
"The classrooms would be so cold that I wouldn't be able to take off my coat. I was very uncomfortable:"
LYNNA PHAM Freshman from Wichita
"Many of our buildings are two-pipe systems rather than four-pipe systems," Phillips said. "Four-pipe systems have cooling water and heating water, supply and return. So you can get both heating and cooling if you need it at any time. When you have a two-pipe system, you have one or the other. You have heat in the winter and you have cooling in the summer."
The age of certain buildings contributes to the inconsistency in temperature, as well. Some of
the older buildings function on an out-of-date system that doesn't allow for optimal control of temperatures.
"In a lot of cases, we have pneumatic controls in some buildings, which they don't really use anymore," Phillips said. "Pneumatic is air-driven, so it will use an air system to help control the system instead of digital thermostats. When a new building is built we have a lot more ability to control the temperature and systems within it."
Facilities Services js trying to modernize many of the heating
KEY POINTS
The University's energy policy requires a standard temperature to aim for across campus that is meant to use sufficient amounts of energy and supply a comfortable temperature. According to Phillips, the University aims to heat buildings up to 69 degrees in the winter and cool to 76 degrees in the summer, though the temperatures don't always reach this standard.
- It's difficult for the University to maintain a consistent heat throughout the buildings on campus because of a few out-of-date systems.
- The University follows a strict sustainability policy that supports sustainable alternatives such as steam power and regulated temperatures.
- Solar paneling may be in the works to allow for a more sustainable use of energy and a more modern, efficient system.
and cooling units.
George Werth, campus energy manager, said that there is a possibility of adding an array of solar panels so that the University's energy use is more sustainable and efficient. Facilities Services is applying for a grant through Westar Energy that is due by March 1. If selected, the University plans to add the solar panel array by the end of 2015.
Currently, the University's steam plant, which is a natural gas-fired plant, provides steam
through a central distribution system to heat the buildings in the winter. Steam is one of the more efficient sources of energy that the University uses.
Phillips urges students to assist with the efforts.
"The best source of sustainable savings is from people; from students." Phillips said. "Turning off lights, powering down equipment, keeping a fume hood closed, just look to conserve energy anywhere you can."
Edited by Alec Weaver
ECONOMY
Colorado pot market exceeds tax hopes
ASSOCIATED PRESS
DENVER — Colorado's legal marijuana market is far exceeding tax expectations, according to a budget proposal released Wednesday by Gov. John Hickenlooper that gives the first official estimate of how much the state expects to make from pot taxes.
The proposal outlines plans to spend some $99 million next fiscal year on substance abuse prevention, youth marijuana use prevention
Retail sales began Jan. 1 in Colorado. Sales have been strong, though exact figures for January sales won't be made public until early next month.
and other priorities. The money would come from a statewide 10 percent sales tax on recreational pot, indicating Colorado's total sales next fiscal year will be near $1 billion.
The governor predicted sales and excise taxes next fiscal year would produce some $98 million, well above a $70 million annual estimate given
to voters when they approved the pot taxes last year. The governor also includes taxes from medical pot, which are subject only to the statewide 2.9 percent sales tax.
Washington state budget forecasters released a projection Wednesday for that state, where retail sales don't begin for a few months.
Economic forecasters in Olympia predicted that the state's new legal recreational marijuana market will bring nearly $190 million to state
The spending plan included $45.5 million for youth use prevention, $40.4 million for substance abuse treatment and $12.4 million for public health.
In Colorado, Hickenlooper's proposal listed six priorities for spending the pot sales taxes.
"We view our top priority as creating an environment where negative impacts on children from marijuana legalization are avoided completely,"
coffers over four years starting in mid-2015. Washington state sets budgets biennially.
Hickenlooper wrote in a letter to legislative budget writers, which must approve the plan.
The governor also proposed a $5.8 million, three-year "statewide media campaign on marijuana use," presumably highlighting the drug's health risks. The state Department of Transportation would get $1.9 million for a new "Drive High, Get a DUI" campaign to tout the state's new marijuana blood-limit standard for drivers.
KU$\textcircled{1}$nfo
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Sixty-six years ago. Franklin Murphy became dean of the KU School of Medicine at only 32 years of age. He was the youngest man in the country to hold such an office. Three years later, he replaced Deane Malott on KU's girth and certainly
youngest) chancellor.
POLICY
Kansas House passes bill to exempt textbook sales from taxes
Both KU students and on-campus bookstores might have more cash in their pockets when the Fall 2014 semester arrives.
House Bill 2557, which was successfully amended by Rep. Brandon Whipple, D-Wichita, on Tuesday to include a tax refund on textbooks bought by students in pursuit of a post-secondary education. The bill successfully passed the House committee on Wednesday with a 122-0 vote.
Steve Levin, general manager of the Jayhawk Bookstore, said that he thinks it will be beneficial for him as well as the state if the bill becomes a law because it will increase the money being spent in the state.
"Buying a physics book here, even though there is no sales tax — that $150 will stay in Kansas." Levin said. "You save on a $300 textbook bill, that will be about $25 that you can go ahead and spend at Pickleman's or someplace else, buy some pizza. It keeps the money here."
Rep. Ken Corbet, R-Topeka,
Rep. Jerry Lunn, R-Overland Park,
were both unavailable for comment regarding the bill's passing on Wednesday afternoon.
Student Senate outreach director Morgan Said has not yet returned remarks regarding the bill's passing.
Tom Dehart
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