New York private college to shift from fossil fuel heating to geothermal
Seth Goldfine Memorial Field & The Charles P. Stevenson Jr, Library, Bard College, New York (source: Peter Aaron/OTTO)
Carlo Cariaga
27 Feb 2024
Brightcore Energy will be providing turnkey services for a new geothermal heating and cooling system in Bard College, New York.
Bard College, a private liberal arts college in the hamlet of Annandale-on-Hudson, New York State, will soon replace its aging, fossil fuel-fired heating and cooling system located in The Charles P. Stevenson, Jr Library with a new state-of-the-art system that will run on geothermal energy. The project calls for the drilling of 50 boreholes, each to a depth of 500 feet (152 meters) and with 1.25 in. diameter.
Brightcore Energy will provide turnkey services for the project, delivering everything from feasibility and design, drilling and ground loop installation, mechanical connections, incentive procurement, and systems performance monitoring upon completion. The company is also involved in a community geothermal project in Southeast Washington, DC, as well as in geothermal drilling at the Manhattanville campus of Columbia University.
The geothermal heating and cooling system progresses Bard College’s mission-driven focus on sustainability efforts and is aligned with the Office of Sustainability’s 2035 carbon-neutrality goals. The project is the latest in a string of educational institutions in the United States turning to geothermal energy as a means of lowering their carbon footprint while optimizing energy usage and replacing inefficient and aging infrastructure.
“We are very excited to be working with Bard College. From their leadership to their student body, this is an institution that is incredibly focused on sustainability,” said Mike Richter, President of Brightcore Energy. “We truly enjoy working with all our clients, learning about their operations and their motivations for implementing energy conservation measures. Seeing the passion that the Bard College community has for conservation and sustainability firsthand is so encouraging and admirable. It’s a perfect complement to the natural beauty of their Hudson Valley campus.”
Dan Smith, Energy Manager & Special Projects Coordinator at Bard College added, “Bard College has been an early adopter of geothermal, with some systems on campus dating to the late 1980’s. It is the default for all new construction projects, and nearly 38% of the campus building area utilizes the technology.”
“However, converting the rest of the existing building stock is an entirely new set of challenges, especially when infrastructure is 50 to 100 or more years old. The Library Project will be our first effort to transform an existing building, with an oil-fire boiler plant and conventional chiller system, to a ground-source heat exchanger and heat pump plant. We are excited to partner with Brightcore and to tap its technical and financial expertise for this crucial step on Bard’s path to achieve carbon-neutrality.”
The geothermal heating and cooling system further progresses Bard College’s mission-driven focus on sustainability efforts.
