CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. -- The public utility for San Diego County’s natural gas and electricity recognized Camp Pendleton’s energy-conservation measures by presenting to the base a check for $1,002,570.42 at a ceremony in the courtyard of the 14 Area enlisted barracks here Dec. 10.
Brig. Gen. Vincent A. Coglianese accepted an oversize check representing incentives the base earned in San Diego Gas & Electric’s Saving By Design program, which grants incentives for maximized energy performance in new construction projects.
“Our partnership with SDG&E is very important,” said Coglianese. “They’ve stood shoulder to shoulder with us on these projects, and it is a visible improvement on the quality of life for our Marines and sailors aboard the base. And we appreciate everyone who’s helped us achieve these goals.”
SDG&E vice president Caroline Winn said the check was a testament to Camp Pendleton’s commitment to the environment and community.
“Camp Pendleton has been a proven leader in showcasing what the future for green building in San Diego looks like, and it’s really set the bar high for other military facilities around the nation,” said Winn. “The five projects here provide an overall energy savings of more than 4 million kilowatt hours, which is the equivalent of powering more than 600 homes for an entire year and also almost 200,000 therms, the equivalent of taking almost 450 vehicles off of the road.”
According to Navy Capt. Marko Medved, the officer in charge of construction here, many enlisted barracks have been renovated to reduce power and water consumption. He said barracks by the airfield and School of Infantry here are operating on geothermal power and some barracks are piped with water-recycling systems. Moreover, natural light and natural ventilation designs have curbed energy consumption.
Medved said SDG&E and the base continue to partner up on several large energy-conservation projects.
“(SDG&E is) coordinating with us on the 12 (kilovolt) power system throughout the base to upgrade our older infrastructure, and they are bringing in primary and alternate power to the Naval Hospital, which is no small task because it’s time critical,” said Medved. “They are also working with us on overall emergency management, which is what a lot of the power issues are about in our focus on energy security.”
“Energy and water conservation is really at the forefront of much of what we do, and for all the right reasons,” said Coglianese, who serves as base commander and regional authority for five Marine Corps installations in the Southwestern United States. “We pay $24 million in utilities at Camp Pendleton alone, and the acceptance of this energy Savings by Design check is a recognizable example of the energy-conservation efforts of our staff as well as an enormous step forward.”
Coglianese said that energy conservation efforts in barracks and family-oriented facilities are paying off in the process of supporting Marines and their families.
“We have over 34,000 Marines living in these facilities, and we’re reducing energy costs by about $8.9 million in a 20-year period, a 13-percent reduction,” said Coglianese. “We renovated the De Luz Child Development Center, which is pretty important to our families here, and replaced it with a 47,000-square-foot building that’s truly modern in every way and supports over 300 children daily.”