Lake Source Cooling is only the latest of many energy-conservation systems in place at Cornell, including:
Thermal Storage In 1991, the university installed a 4.4 million-gallon tank to store chilled water. Chilling equipment runs more efficiently and at less cost at night, at a savings of over $300,000 each year. This system won the Governor's Award for Energy Excellence and the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers' highest international design award.
Hydropower Cornell restored and continues to operate a hydroelectric plant originally built in 1898 in the Fall Creek gorge. This facility generates approximately 5,000,000 kilowatt hours annually, enough electricity for 600 homes.
Cogeneration Cornell has generated electricity at its heating plant since 1940 as a by-product of its steam-heating activities. This produces power at twice the efficiency level of area utilities and meets over 10 percent of the campus's total needs.
Energy Management and Control System Cornell operates an energy management and control system, one of the most respected such operations in the nation. It controls energy usage for nearly all Ithaca campus facilities.
Very High Efficiency Chiller This high-tech chiller, a model for systems all over the world, produces chilled water at four to five times the efficiency of comparable light-commercial air-conditioning equipment on an annual basis.
Creek Water Cooling Cornell has run a small version of LSC on Beebe Lake since 1989. The university has met all its winter cooling needs for computers and other equipment from the cold water in Fall Creek and Beebe Lake. This system may be kept as a back-up to LSC for the cold winter months each year.
