College goes green and gets noticed

OBERLIN -- Oberlin College, a small private school founded in 1833 known for its rich tradition in social responsibility is now making a name for itself in environmental responsibility.

Even the campus security is ?going green.? Oberlin security now has two hybrid vehicles.

Tthe college also has mycitywheels.com. It?s a rental car program for students and administrators...

It?s all part of a student movement to protect the environment.

Senior Andrew Decoriolis puts it this way, "this is the biggest social issue of our generation. It is the largest challenge our generation has."

Students are even challenging each other...

Oberlin has a monitoring system that measures how much energy each dorm is using. Environmental Studies Professor, John Petersen says a recent competition between the dorms made a difference. "The winning dorms reduced their electricity use by as much as 56% in a two week period.?

The campus is also using solar power. The Lewis Center for Environmental Studies is a ?green? building. It has solar panels on the roof and on a parking pavilion. Over the course of a year the solar panels produce more energy than the building uses.

The auditorium in the building has acoustic tiles made out of compressed straw and the fabric on the seats is biodegradable. The manufacturer says you can even eat it?but doesn?t recommend it.

Oberlin will have its first green graduation in a couple weeks.

The National Wildlife Federation and the EPA recently recognized Oberlin College for its commitment to the environment.

The campus does have a coal-fired plant. But, environmentalists hope to convert it to burning wood chips in the future.