Section A·Page 6
The University Daily Kansan
Nation/World
Tuesday, October 3, 2000
For comments, contact Lori O'Toole at 864-4810 or e-mail editor@kansan.com
Residence hall offers eco-friendly housing
The Associated Press
ASHLAND, Wis. — Resident hall life is a little different for 90 students at Northland College: Their "living laboratory" features a 120-foot-tall wind generator, solar panels, recycled furniture and waterless toilets.
"It's great — it's such a way of life already," said Kelsey Forrest, 19, of Burnsville, Minn. An environmental studies major, she shares an apartment in the residence hall with five other women.
The small liberal arts college near Lake Superior touts its $4.1 million Environmental Living and Learning Center as one of the most advanced "green" residence halls in the United States.
The two-story residence hall features three wings, some with windows facing southward to collect as much solar warmth as possible in a climate where winter normally begins in November and lingers through March. Students can grow plants in two greenhouses.
When Northland began considering a new residence hall several years ago, students insisted it be environmentally efficient.
The residence hall opened in 1998. Among its features:
"Students were saying, 'Don't just teach us. Show us.' said Tom Wojciechowski, the director of student development.
About 8 percent of its electricity is generated by the 20-kilowatt wind tower and three solar arrays.
14 solar panels on the roof preheat hot water, cutting those costs nearly 30 percent.
- Some furniture, including the bed frames, desks and bathroom counters, is made from recycled milk jugs or soybean hulls and newsprint.
Organic-based linoleum covers the floor instead of petroleum-based vinyl.
A handwritten sign above one of the waterless compost toilets would have
'They are on the cutting edge. It
is a living laboratory."
Rich Hackner
Wisconsin
associate director of the Energy Center of
been pertinent decades ago in an outhouse;
"Hey composter: Remember to put a handful of wood chips in and close the lid when done."
Rich Hackner, associate director of the Energy Center of Wisconsin, a nonprofit corporation that promotes energy efficiency, said he knew of no other college residence hall in the United States with so many eco-friendly features.
"They are on the cutting edge," he said. "It is a living laboratory."
The U.S. Energy Department's Center of Excellence for Sustainable Development lists the residence hall as one of 26 success stories for commercial projects in the United States.
Furman University in Greenville, S.C., opened an Eco Cottage this fall. Eight students use only recycled paper products, monitor the environmental effect of their food and toiletry purchases and limit energy and water consumption, in part by using a low-impact faucet.
Christine Ervin, president of U.S. Green Building Council, said the council's 510 members included Northland and 27 other colleges and universities.
"I would be surprised if we did not have another 25 in six months," she said. "The university community is demonstrating some real interest in green buildings."
Forrest's rooming fees are $2,400 for the school year, slightly more than for other residences on campus, but she has no qualms about her choice.
"I am glad I am doing it," she said. "There's a lot more we can do, and I think this is a good starting point."
New cigarette might be safer
Product contains fewer carcinogens company claims
The Associated Press
RICHMOND, Va. — A small tobacco company is test-marketing a new type of cigarette in Virginia and Kentucky that it says has lower levels of one type of cancer-causing substance than regular brands.
star Scientific Inc. said yesterday it planned to expand the tests of its Advance brand to other states in a couple of months.
Industry experts are dubious that reduced-risk cigarettes will sell among smokers, and they are particularly skeptical about Advance because of the company's reluctance to market them as less dangerous.
In fact. Advance cigarettes come with a
warning that begins, "There is NO such thing as a safe cigarette," and ends with. "It is much safer for you to QUIT than to switch or smoke."
"We're trying to be very, very careful and as responsible as possible," said Paul L. Perito, chairman of the company.
the company says Advance cigarettes produce 70 percent less than leading brands of the class of cancer-causing toxins known as tobacco-specific nitrosamines. They also come with a charcoal filter to reduce toxic gases such as carbon monoxide.
Perito said it was too soon to claim that Advance cigarettes were less hazardous.
"It will take several years to finalize the research," he said.
That cautious approach led to skepticism by one industry expert.
"It's silly to think that smokers are going to switch if you can't promote it as safer," said David Adelman, a tobacco analyst with Morgan Stanley Dean Witter.
Donald Shopland, an expert at the
ON THE NET Star Scientific: http://starscientific.com
National Cancer Institute, said nitrosamines were one of about 50 cancer-causing agents in cigarettes. There is nothing to show whether reducing one carcinogen would make cigarettes less harmful, he said.
"About switching to this product, we would be able to provide no advice whatsoever." Shonland said.
Nitrosamines are formed during the tobacco leaf curing process, and Star Scientific said it had a new curing method that reduced nitrosamine production.
Advance cigarettes are not the industry's first attempt at lowering nitrosamines in cigarettes.
R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. is marketing Eclipse, and Philip Morris Co. is test-marketing Accord. Both reduce nitrosamine emissions by using special heating techniques to produce smoke without conventional burning.
Brazil not meeting electricity needs
The Associated Press
ANGRA DOS REIS, Brazil — When the Angra 2 nuclear plant finally came online in July, Brazil took a giant step toward meeting its electricity needs — of a decade ago.
Billions of dollars above its budget and 16 years behind schedule, the reactor is a nod to an earlier era when the 1964-86 military regime still dreamed of transforming Brazil into a world power.
But as Brazil faces its worst energy crisis in decades, Angra 2's 1,300 megawatts of electricity will be as much help as a glass of water thrown into a raging fire.
Brazil already is using more electricity than its generators can comfortably handle, and with the economy poised to grow a solid 4 percent this year and beyond, the country will have to find new sources of power quickly or risk widespread periodic blackouts.
"Brazil runs a real risk of electricity rationing in 2001," said Marcos Severine, an electricity sector analyst with the investment firm Sudamers.
Sao Paulo's Industrial Federation recently sent a memorandum to its members suggesting they think about building their own electricity generators to ensure an adequate supply. It's a step already taken by Votorantim, Brazil's largest industrial group.
In neighboring Argentina, generators are being built with an eye toward sales to Brazil.
The government has an emergency plan to have 12 natural gas-powered electric plants running by next year. But high interest rates in Brazil, uncertainties surrounding government regulation and worries about its currency are keeping most investors away from expensive power projects.
The immediate problem is Brazil relies on hydroelectric dams for 95 percent of its electricity, and several years of unusually light rains have left reservoirs low.
Analysts estimate Brazil needs to invest $6 billion in electrical generation to meet its needs during the medium term. So far, the government has managed to attract only about $1 billion.
However Brazil squeezes through the crisis, one thing is sure: Electricity is going to cost more.
Brazilian electricity now costs a third less than other sources of electricity. So as the new gas-powered plants go into operation, prices will have to go up.
"Even if we don't experience the lack of energy feared for 2001, it seems inevitable that energy prices will rise sharply in the coming months," said Horacio Lafer Piva, president of the Sao Paulo Industrial Federation.