CUB and CEE Presentation

On February 12th, The Citizens Utility Board and the Center for Energy and Environment came to Macalester to speak to students about reducing their energy use in their homes.  The Citizens Utility Board, or C.U.B. is a consumer advocate for clean affordable reliable energy that serves residential homes and small businesses. They are free to all Minnesotans. CUB is committed to reducing the cost and environmental impact of energy for Minnesotan residents. During the presentation, the representative from CUB helped explain the expenses on ones electricity bill. A representative from The Center for Energy and Environment, or CEE, also spoke. CEE offers programs and services to improve efficiency in homes and communities. One service that the CEE offers if a visit from the Home Energy Squad, where representatives from CEE come to ones house, run diagnostic tests and determine ways to better ones energy consumption. This service should be free to all Macalester Students. The CEE also offered suggestions on how to decrease energy consumption in homes, listed below:

• Change out your old incandescent lightbulbs to LED (these last longer and can save up to $100 a year)
• Turn down your thermostat
• Put plastic on your windows or invest in storm windows- improves comfort and efficiency
• Efficient heating- make sure you change your furnace filters, keep furniture away from registers, if you have a boiler, use radiator reflectors (cardboard w tinfoil to send heat into living space)
• Use thermal insulated curtains or shades

Macalester aims to be Carbon Neutral by 2025. Support energy efficiency off campus as well in your homes!