The Barometer Online

Issue date: 10/3/08 Section: News

Media Credit: Peter Strong Governor Ted Kulongoski, center, talks about OSU's new Energy Center with Paul Durant, left, project manager for Andersen Construction, as Robert Howse, of Jacobs Engineering Group, looks on during a tour the Energy Center on Thursday.

The office in the OSU heat plant is made from the remains of an old boiler.

Gov. Ted Kulongoski stood among those remains during his brief tour of the plant Thursday morning before embarking on a visit to the new combined heat and power (CHP) plant that is being built on southwest Jefferson Way.

The visit was part of Kulongoski's effort to lessen the impact of carbon dioxide emissions throughout Oregon.

"The move towards energy independence is a critical issue," Kulongoski said. "We have to move off of dependence of fossil fuels."

According to Kulongoski's official website, utilities and other large stationary emitters of carbon dioxide produce more than one half of Oregon's greenhouse gas emissions.

"Oregon is a national and international leader in the fight against global warming," Kulongoski said.

"The idea of utilizing co-generation plants around the state plays a major role in the move towards using renewable resources and lessening our dependence on fossil fuels," he said.

The Climate Trust Project, a non-profit company that promotes the development of greenhouse gas offsets, played a key role in helping fund the construction of the CHP plant, along with the support of the Oregon Energy program.

According to the Climate Trust Web site, the organization's mission is to "promote climate change solutions by providing high quality greenhouse gas offset projects and advancing sound offset policy."

The CHP plant is an example of an efficient energy-generating process and, according to the Climate Trust website, "will not only save money on operating costs and grid-generated electricity, but will also serve as a model of environmentally-friendly practices in power generation."

The CHP plant will not only provide heat, but also enough electricity to meet approximately 50 percent of OSU's electrical load, avoiding the use of grid-based electricity (which is generated at a higher carbon dioxide emissions rate).

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