The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com 'U' researchers, local business owners tout geothermal energy From Page 1A ment. To first cover the upfront cost of the system, the Grocoffs took out a rehabilitation loan to be paid back over the 30-year life of the geother- mal system, adding $40 to their monthly mortgage payment. "The payback was immediate," he said. "As soon as the geothermal started running in March (of2006), it cut our utility bill by 200 bucks." What may be more remarkable, however, is that the Grocoffs paid $350 for heating, cooling and hot water for the month of January prior to installing the system. After the geothermal system became operational, the Grocoffs spent around $550 in total for 2007 - a monthly average of about $45. With the savings in mind, Gro- coff said everyone looking to pur- chase a new furnace in the next five years should instead invest in a geothermal system. Grocoff cited the 30 percent tax credit incen- tive guaranteed for implementing a geothermal system as outlined in the energy rebate section of the recent stimulus plan as one major reason to install one. In its simplest sense, geothermal energy relies on extracting heat from the Earth's interior to gen- erate power. Current geothermal systems come in two types. In one form, deep boreholes are drilled into the ground and fluids are run through a system for direct exchange of heat. Generators that use this form often rely upon hydrothermal resources like hot springs to produce electricity. The second type of geother- mal systems, like the one in Gro- coff's home, take advantage of the Earth's static temperatures at shallow depths of 20 feet or more where seasonal variation is not felt. At about 50 degrees Fahren- heit year-round, the ground is an effective heat sink in the summer and a heat source in the winter. Consideringhis original motiva- tions to pursue green renovations, Grocoff echoed the sentiments of environmental pundits, saying that current levels of energy consump- tion are unsustainable. "It has become obvious with automobiles, and it's soon becoming obvious with our homes," he said. Henry Pollack, professor emeri- tus of geological sciences, said the new appeal for geothermal systems has come from the rising price of carbon-based fuels. The initial installation cost of the system is paid back over a number of years, and the savings have always been relative to the cost of natural gas. "When carbon-based fuels MSA From Page 1A uniting to urge the U.S. Senate to pass the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act to help undocumented young people, who arrived to the United States as children, become citizens by either completing two years of military service or attend college for two years. The bill would also allow universities to offer these students in-state tuition at state schools and make them eligible for financial aid. Currently, it is unclear if state universities can offer in-state tuition to undocu- mented immigrants. At itsweekly meeting last night, the Michigan 'Student Assembly passed a resolution supporting a federal DREAM Act in a vote of 17-5-10. It was authored by Rack- ham Rep. Kate Stenvig and LSA Rep. Robby Saldafia. The resolution includes sup- porting a march for the act that will be held on May S in southwest Detroit. The march will begin in Patton Memorial Park at 10 a.m. and end at Clark Park with a rally at noon. Organizations contribut- ing to the march and rally include, Migrant and Immigrant Rights Awareness, By Any Means Neces- sary and Latinos Unidos/United de Michigan. "Many of these (undocumented immigrants) have attended ,U.S. schools for most of their lives, but their immigration status bars them from opportunities that make a college education afford- able, including in-state tuition rates, loans and grants, most pri- vate scholarships and the abil- ity to work legally," the resolution reads. The resolution states that MSA will send a copy of the resolu- tion to President Barack Obama, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelo- si, The Michigan Daily, The Ann Arbor News and the Detroit Free Press. Several supporters of the DREAM Act addressed the assembly about the issue at both last night's and last week's meet- ings, encouraging representatives to vote in favor of the resolution. Laura Sanders, a lecturer in the School of Social Work and founder of an interfaith coalition for immigrant rights, stressed the importance of the cause at MSA's meeting last week. "The whole issue of immigra- tion is really at the forefront of our human rights and civil rights movements right now," she said. "We don'treally realize how under attack our immigrant community is, and you can really change that. You can really have a voice as Michigan students." The proposal was originally brought before the assembly last week but was tabled until this week because the meeting ran too Wednesday, April 15, 2009 - 7A long. The DREAM Act applies to students with "good moral char- acter" who arrived in the United States before turning 16, lived in the country for at least five years and graduated from high school or earned a General Education Development diploma. After high school graduation, individuals are required to serve in the military or attend college for at least two years, according to the Library of Congress website. LSA senior Christine Rhee, president of Migrant and Immi- grant Rights Awareness (MIRA), said the DREAM Act would help to provide financial relief for undocumented immigrants. "So far a lot of undocumented students are just stalling or are deferring their acceptance let- ters or aren't even considering going to higher universities just because of the fact that they have undocumented status and the fact that they can't pay for out-of-state tuition, granted their whole lives were practically in the states that they wanted to apply to," she said. Mohammed said if the DREAM Act were to pass, it would help him finish college and earn a degree in social work. "The one personal thing is that it would enable me to go to school and finish my degree, my master's and bachelor's, and then actually be able to give back to the commu- nity that I've pretty much grown up in my whole life," he said. Mohammed said he believes in students' potential to make a dif- ference in the passage of the leg- islation. "One big role is just as a sign of unity. Everybody coming together and voicing support for it is one big definite step," he said. "And another one would be going and actually lobbying on behalf of it as students and as people from the community." Stenvig echoed this sentiment, saying that universities play a critical role in passing this legis- lation. "In particular, universities can play a big role because students are coming to administrations, who can say, 'We need to do this to make it possible for (undocu- mented) students to be able to come here,'"she said. "And I think that's really important." Even though several repre- sentatives who spoke against the resolution said they favored the overall concept of the DREAM Act, there was opposition due to the unstable nature of the bill. Rackham Rep. Michael Benson, who did not vote in favor of the resolution, said he would encour- age the assembly to follow the bill as it might change and to read- dress the act in the fall. "My main objection was the fact that we just approved some- thing that we don't know what the final form will be," Benson said. The geothermal energy unit in the basement of Matt Grocoff's century old house on Seventh Street in Ann Arbor. were cheaper, the payout [for geo-. thermal] was eight, 10 or even 12 years," he said. "Now, with the payoff in seven or fewer years, geothermal has become an attrac- tive alternative." Pollack has spent most of his research career measuring sub- surface temperatures across the globe in an effort to map heat loss from its interior. He said the expense of drilling boreholes and the scarcity of loca- tions with "hot rocks" puts deep mining for heat far behind wind power as an established source of energy. And despite the low effi- ciency of solar panels, Pollack said the Earth's interior only generates four-thousandths of the sun's heat. "I just don't think we'll see the mining of the heat as a large-scale replacement for other sources of energy," he said. While deep mining for heat may not be viable in the near future, shallow heat exchangers have already made their way into more than 15,000 Michigan homes, according to the Michigan Geo- thermal Energy Association. Pollack's only concern with the personal geothermal system is that a large amount of fluid exchange is HILLEL From Page 1A Brooks said the worst case sce- nario would be staff and salary cuts. But programs like free Shab- bat dinner, free chicken soup for sick and overwhelmed students and the Golden Apple Award - which honors outstanding teach- ers at the University - aren't in immediate danger, though. Many of the 6,000 Jewish stu- dents on campus frequent Hillel on a fairly regular basis. Directors began to detect finan- cial problems over the past couple months, leading the organization to take measures to turn the situa- tion around. On April 5, Hillel launched a Facebook campaign and mobi- lized other efforts to raise money for the organization. Officials are trying to expand BEER TAX From Page 1A state Senate. Both Gov. Jennifer Granholm and many Republican senators are opposed to raising taxes after recently increasing the state income tax, according to The Associated Press. Matt Marsden, spokesman for Republican Senate Majority Lead- er Mike Bishop, said that after the recent income tax raise, any pro- posal to raise sales taxes the Sen- ate would likely reject. "We've made it clear, and the governor made it clear back in February, that revenue through fees and taxes is not something we are willing to support," Mars- den said. Marsden said that while he thinks it is a hearty attempt at raising funds for their cause, tax- ing various goods will not solve the state's economic issues. "We have a $1 billion debt and a nickel of beer is not going to cover the organization's base of donors who may be able to contribute larger sums to the Hillel. Students are also being asked to reach out to family and friends who have University connections and set- ting their Facebook profiles and pictures to encourage supporting the organization. Neal Ashinsky, chair of Hillel's student board, is hoping students 'will support the group and that Hillel will be able to continue to provide the same levels of service. Though it's possible Hillel may have some tough choices, Brooks said he is happy with the support the organization has received since announcing the campaign. "It's thus been all the more gratifying to see so many stu- dents, parents and alumni rallying to help Hillel not only sustain its level of service to U-M students but to help it continue to grow," he wrote in the e-mail. that," he said. "We've had these problems with the deficit for eight years." Mike Lashbrook, president of the Michigan Wine and Beer Wholesalers Association, a trade association in Lansing, said that state taxes on beer are already rel- atively high. He said an increase would not only hurt the beer industry in Michigan, but also consumers. "The current tax on beer is already significantly higher than neighboring states," he said. Lashbrook said he believed the proposed tax increase is simply an attempt to find financial sup- port the state government will not provide, though the ramifications of such a tax could reach everyone in Michigan. "Right now the tax increase is just a suggestion from a private task force to find funding," he said. "But an increase that more than doubles the current rate will hurt the economy, the jobs in Michigan, and the low-income tax payer." necessary for heating and cooling, potentially limiting widespread use in homes. "Noteveryone'syardisbigenough to have a sufficient loop of pipe, or if you have a small place, you would have to go deeper to get an equiva- lent vertical loop," he said. Meadowlark Builders, a local design and building firm for Washtenaw County, has sought to address the typical constraints for installing geothermal heating and cooling systems - especially in context of historic renovations. DougSelby, presidentof Meadow- lark Builders, founded the company five years ago with sustainability in mind. He said green renovations have been a means to counter rising natural gas prices, which excused poor buildirg practices in the past. "When energy was cheap, the workmanship wasn't good, but you could throw extra energy at it knowing it would work," he said. Stressingthe importanceofinsu- lation, Selby said heating and cool- ingenergy losses can be reduced by up to two-thirds with a well-sealed home, allowing geothermal sys- tems to operate at lower costs. "Our goal is to build zero energy houses," he said. "That's difficult COLEMAN From Page IA said. "That's a moving target right now." When Coleman opened the floor for questions, students asked her whether she expected a tuition increase next year and how much the increase could be. Coleman told students it was too early to know whether an increase would be necessary, but said she would know what the tuition rates would be in June, when the budget is sub- mitted to the University Board of Regents. Several students asked Coleman what the University was planning to do to help students deal with the burden of rising tuition levels that have made it difficult for some stu- dents to afford tuition. Coleman didn't offer specifics on any new programs at the Univer- sity, but told students that several federal initiatives will help make tuition more affordable next year. Coleman said the American Opportunity Tax Credit, which will offer a $2,500 higher educa- tion tax credit to individuals nak- ing less than $80,000 a year or couples making less than $160,000 a year, will help to make tuition more affordable. Additionally, Coleman said increases to work study programs will create 440 new job opportu- nities for University students and give an additional $1.6 million to students over the next two years. Finally, Coleman said the $619 increase to individual Pell Grants would benefit as many as 3,300 students on campus. The increase will make the average Pell Grant award $5,050 for the year. Several students also asked Coleman what the University is doing to cut costs or increase rev- enue streams so that tuition rates don't need to be increased. Coleman responded that every year the deans of each school submit budget plans that would eliminate 1 percent, 3 percent and in our climate and especially dif- ficult in retrofitting situations, but we keep trying to push toward that goal." An attendee of annual green building conferences, Grocoff, the homeowner with the geothermal unit, admitted it is difficult to find resources to make decisions about insulation, heating, cooling, light- ing and water conservation. "Even with all of the talk of green, there's not a really good resource where homeowners can go to and learn how to do this," he said. To address the issue, Grocoff has started an Internet TV channel project called GreenovatinnTV.com. Set to launch on Earth Dav next week, the website will offer free on-demand access to videos about green building and renovation with support from social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter. Grocoff said he hopes Greenova- tionTV will serve as "a space where homeowners can come together and share ideas." And given his recent success with implement- ing a personal geothermal unit, he anticipates the site will attract an audience looking to both live green and save money. University President Mary Sue Coleman discusses financial issues with students during her fireside chat yesterday. 5 percent of their budget. Based on the plans, administrators can then determine how much to cut from each budget. "My own office, I've got to cut 1 percent out of my budget this year," Coleman said. "I don't know yet how I'm going to do it, but I'm going to do it because we have to." One student raised concerns that with that process, deans may have an incentive to pad their budgets with extra money, so that their cuts aren't as fully real- ized. Harper told the student that because of the process in place and the level of detail required in budget proposals, that wouldn't be possible. A different student recom- mended to Coleman that she and other University executives take pay cuts to help cut expenses at the University. Coleman didn't say she was planning to take a cut, but avoided the question by saying she couldn't speak for other Univer- sity executives. Though she has donated pay increases back to Uni- versity causes, Coleman accepted the salary boost she was awarded by the regents in September. At about $760,000 in total compen- sation, Coleman currently ranks fifth among the highest-paid pub- lic university presidents, according to The Chronicle of Higher Educa- tion. She continued byexplainingthat competitive salaries are required to attract quality employees, both for administrators and faculty members. Students raised other concerns, including the amount of money spent on faculty retention incen- tives and the lack of transparency in the University budget. Students also gave Coleman recommenda- tions, which ranged from more socially responsible investment practices to higher payouts from the endowment. Before the meeting ended, Cole- man told students a new web- site will launch Monday that will include information about the Uni- versity's budget, in an effort to bet- ter inform students and members of the University community about what the University is doing to pre- vent additional financial burdens on students and their families.