Climate Action at SCU: Santa Clara Green Power
Silicon Valley Power (SVP) is a community-owned, local electric utility company in the Bay Area (1). As a participant in SVP's Santa Clara Green Power program, Santa Clara University is able to cover 100% of its electricity usage with renewable sources (2). The initiative works by purchasing renewable energy certificates from solar and wind facilities equivalent to SCU’s total electricity demand (SVP 2). Through the program, SCU supports the generation of 300 megawatt hours of renewable energy, preventing more than 21,500 tons of carbon emissions each year (3).
In the past, Santa Clara Green Power was available to individual residents living in Santa Clara, allowing people to choose to power their homes with renewable energy in the same way as commercial partners like SCU (4). However, with SVP’s recent announcement that 100% of the energy it provides is carbon-free, now all Santa Clara residents will be using clean electricity without needing to opt into the program (4). This means that members of the SCU community living off campus will get their electricity from 100% carbon-free sources!
Santa Clara University’s ability to support clean energy both on and off campus is an important part of our efforts to maintain carbon neutrality.
Sources:
- “About SVP,” Silicon Valley Power.
- Green Power for Your Business, Silicon Valley Power.
- “Renewable Energy,” SCU Center for Sustainability.
- “Green Power for Your Home, Silicon Valley Power.