The residents requested a more environmentally friendly hot water system for Knutzen Hall, the designated ecologically focused residence hall at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point (UWSP). That student request has now been fulfilled as Knutzen Hall students have a fully operational solar water heating system.

The project of modifying the heating system and installing and implementing a solar thermal energy system for Knutzen cost about $45,000. The entire cost for the upgrade was paid for by student fees with no state tax dollars, according to UWSP facilities director, Larry Beck. The operational solar panels are affixed to the roof of Knutzen and there is space for more panels if needed in the future. This project is part of a larger sustainability effort taking place at UWSP.

Sustainability is a relatively new approach to problem solving at UWSP. Since 2002 the Student Government Association worked with faculty, staff and administrators to approve the Talloires Declaration, a document that calls for increased awareness of environmentally sustainable development and the creation of an institutional culture of sustainability. Simultaneously, UWSP established the University Sustainability Committee (USC). The Web site address is www.uwsp.edu/admin/chancellor/Sustainability.

The committee�s purpose is to promote implementation of the declaration and to advise campus administrators how to advance and promote sustainability. It is comprised of students, university personnel and public members, such as the executive director of Midwest Renewable Energy Association, a representative from Wisconsin Public Service, and a representative from the Stevens Point City Council.