Florida Gulf Coast University is known for being a very green and environmentally friendly university . It is located in South-West Florida and has much wildlife around campus. The school offers many resources to students to teach them and encourage them to recycle and preserve the natural resources that we have around campus. On main campus solar compactors and recycling bins are provided as well as energy efficient lighting. In housing, along with the amenities that are on campus, solar panels and freeze water air-conditions are also in place.
The school offers Big Belly Solar Compactors in many of the high traffic areas along campus. By having many these on campus where each and every student can see them, they are used more often and help to eliminate the waste and the litter that can be seen around many “typical” college campuses in the US. The Big Belly Compactors are constantly compacting the trash that is being placed in to them. This helps to limit the trash pickup saving time and money, as well as fuel. The Big Belly’s get 100% of their energy from the sun and also uses less than 5 watt hours per day.
Traditional recycling bins are also available all throughout the academic buildings. By having these accessible, they give the students who are just getting in or out of class the opportunity to get rid of the trash that they have while also being environmentally conscious.
Many students who attend Florida Gulf Coast University live and work on campus. Since this is their home many take a higher pride in keeping it clean and being sustainable. The dorms that FGCU provides are equipped not only with recycling facilities such as the ones that are on the main campus, but they also have energy-efficient lighting. Many times the lights are off, or they will go off when there is no movement within the room. When someone walks into the room, the lights will turn on and after a while of no movement they will shut back off again. This helps to prevent an over use of energy as well as saves the school hundreds of thousands of dollars each and every year on their energy bill.
Florida Gulf Coast University is also known for having one of the largest ice-thermal storage plants in the state. This will be discussed further in the blog. However, in general this plant helps to save the University money and keeps the electricity bills low and reduces the need for additional buildings for air conditionings.
