Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

Sustainability options a stable resource at PCC

Photos and story by James Hill

Noelle Studer has plenty of energy, especially when she talks about reducing energy consumption.

The PCC sustainability coordinator is busy steering the Rock Creek Campus and the rest of the college onto the road to being in line with regional energy conservation and recycling goals.

“Anything the college can do to cut waste reduces our greenhouse gas emissions and helps our bottom line,” Studer said. “It’s been marvelous to experience such a positive response from people within PCC and public agencies alike.”

So far, she’s been a success. She focused on applying for a National Science Foundation grant that will lead to incorporating ecological literacy into technical courses. She has also been collecting positive stories about how PCC is saving resources and identifying areas for improvement. For instance, Margie Fyfield, division dean of Science and Technology at Rock Creek, cut her division’s printing expenditures by $20,000 per year and turned that savings into faculty development funds.

PCC District President Preston Pulliams has created the PCC Sustainability Task Force, which connects innovative students, operations and academic staff members, building PCC’s capacity for finding solutions. Studer has partnered with the Rock Creek Environmental Consciousness Club, where a dozen students help with waste analysis, studies on accessibility of recycling containers for students, and outreach, like meeting with Sen. Gordon Smith on Alaska oil drilling.

“Where do we want to go?” Studer said. “To get anywhere, we need a team on each campus. There has to be a partnership between the academic and operations sides to reduce waste throughout the institution.”

The Ohio native has always been interested in protecting and restoring the environment. She studied botany and environmental science at Ohio University, worked for the National Parks Service, spent two years with the Peace Corps in West Africa and recently earned a master’s degree in public administration and urban forestry at the University of Washington.

Studer is quick to resolve issues. While at Washington, a building she worked in was fire bombed by radical environmentalists. The incident caused Studer, her classmates, and staff to join forces and evaluate what they could do to minimize environmental impacts.

“We thought about what we needed to do,” she said. “We decided to rebuild Green.”

Studer and her classmates met reluctance from university administration. However, in February of 2006, their idea of a green building that saves on energy costs was dedicated and certified LEED silver (green building rating system). It was proof that change is possible.

“Today, UW uses 100 percent wind power for its energy needs,” said Studer, who also works part-time with the Multnomah County’s Sustainability Initiative. “Our work really paid off.”

And now, Studer is hoping to apply the same philosophy at PCC. She found that all PCC’s copier paper for a year stacked up would be one mile high and cost $90,000 a year. She suggests adopting a paper reduction policy that encourages double-sided printing, posting course materials on MyPCC, and sending announcements and newsletters digitally. The City of Seattle, for example, saved $30,000 per year on copier paper through conservation efforts.

She organized a Rock Creek Waste Analysis to identify recycling problems. From the study, Studer found that 36 percent of what Rock Creek sends to landfills is recyclable material. If the campus can cut down on its waste, it could save money on trash pickup.

“In the 1950s and 60s we did not know our consumption had consequences,” Studer said. “We now have all of the data and satellite images that tell us things are wrong with the environment. Let’s all do something about it.”

For more information on getting involved, call 503-614-7635, or visit the PCC Sustainability website.