The first phase of the geothermal heating and cooling
system at the 660 acre, 47 building Muncie, Indiana campus of Ball State
University was dedicated March 21, 2012. Completion of this half of the project
will save the University $1 million per year in heating and cooling expense,
and cut in half the amount of coal burned annually by the University. Once the
entire project is finished, four old coal fired boilers will be completely
eliminated, and 5.5 million square feet of office, dormitory and classroom space
in all 47 buildings will be heated and cooled by means of 3,600 geothermal bore
holes across the campus.
At the dedication ceremony, U. S. Energy Secretary
Steven Chu touted the project, assisted
by a $5 million stimulus construction grant, as a fine example of President
Obama’s energy policy: “The President has made clear that we need an all of the
above approach to American Energy, an approach that uses homegrown and
alternative energy sources designed and produced by American workers.” Nearly
all components of Ball State’s project were made in the USA, and 50 different
Indiana companies were contracted to complete the project.
