Coal has been the talk of the town for the past few months; students and residents heatedly debated whether or not the City of Oberlin should buy a long-term share in the AMPGS coal plant in southern Ohio, finally deciding to turn town the proposal. But left out of these discussions is the College’s very own coal plant, working day in, day out to fuel our mundane lives.

Oberlin College’s coal-powered central heating plant — the ominous factory-like building behind Mudd that puffs out a consistent cloud of black smoke — has been a concern of the Committee for Sustainability for quite some time, though most students are oblivious to its existence.

Constructed in the 1940s, this heating system wastes an excessive amount of energy and is in dire need of an overhaul. Slushing through snowy Tappan Square, one will notice strips of green grass where the inefficient, corroding underground steam pipes have melted the snow, creating a park-wide checkerboard effect. Excessive heat also rapidly escapes out of all the dorm and classroom windows that students and faculty leave open in rooms where the heaters cannot be adjusted. 

The central heating plant currently practices some co-generation — producing meager amounts of electricity as a conservation byproduct of its steam heat process — but not nearly enough to power the campus. With the extra focus the City and College are giving to coal alternatives, now is the perfect time for renovations which embrace green energy sources. Other colleges have taken such steps: the University of Iowa recently cut a deal with its neighboring Quaker Oats factory, and is currently burning oat hulls for energy, while the University of New Hampshire is currently turning to a local landfill to collect natural gas. 

By saving energy produced by its central heating system, the College can seriously reduce the amount of electricity that it currently buys off the county grid, now about 20 percent. Any steps we take to become self-sufficient could make it easier for the town to pursue smaller, more sustainable sources of power. Although the College will run up against financial costs as it moves away from reliance on coal, moving toward a sustainable future may just be worth the money.