Across campus, Cornell's buildings have been getting makeovers recently. Some have had their heating, ventilation and cooling systems overhauled and refined. Others have had occupancy sensors and variable speed drives installed to curb wastage. Many have gotten new, energy-efficient lighting.

Didn't notice? Well, that's kind of the point.

The effort, part of the university's Energy Conservation Initiative, has had construction and maintenance workers making stops at the College of Veterinary Medicine, the Biotechnology Building, Rhodes Hall, Baker Lab and a long list of others over the last four years. Their goal: to reduce energy use by a noticeable margin -- without making the changes noticeable to the buildings' users.

The initiative, led by the Utilities and Energy Management Department, was launched in 2001 by then Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Harold (Hal) Craft partly in response to student requests following the current U.S. administration's rejection of the Kyoto protocols -- environmental goals agreed upon by 174 nations at the 1997 Kyoto Climate Change Conference in Japan. The Cornell Kyoto Task Team aims to cost-effectively achieve campus energy use by 2010-12 that is 20 percent less than that used in 2000. The university also has pledged to strive toward the Kyoto protocol target of reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 7 percent in 2008-2012, compared with 1990.

The work is going well on all fronts. New dedicated conservation-based maintenance staff help tune buildings to reduce waste and improve operations. Meanwhile, capital improvements are leading to large-scale savings. In the Biotechnology Building, a recent $1.9 million upgrade finished early and under budget. Most of the work was done at night, so the building's occupants were barely disturbed. "We're very excited about the end result there," said W.S. (Lanny) Joyce, a manager in the utilities department. "The Biotech building was our flagship project. We brought the building from the 1980s to 2005."

At the Vet College, a recent project reduced average outside airflow by 30 percent, saving an anticipated $250,000 per year in heating, cooling and maintenance costs.

"On the overall scale, we'd have to give this an A plus," said Gary Urban, facilities coordinator for the Vet College. "There was some pretty extensive upfront coordination, and there was good communication sent out to the college community. The interruptions were minimal. I think it was a success."

"That's fantastic work that needs to continue," said engineering student Matt Perkins '08, president of the Kyoto Now! student group. "The economics of how much the initiative has saved the school seem pretty compelling to me."

He added: "The administration needs to put a stronger force behind it. We see amazing results come from efforts shepherded by just a few people. But very often they're in a position where they want to do more."

Norm Scott, professor of biological and environmental engineering and faculty representative on the Kyoto Task Team, agrees that there is room for improvement. But overall, he said, he is pleased with the university's efforts to become more energy efficient.

"Cornell has a lot of things going on in terms of conservation issues," said Scott. "I have a very high regard for [the utilities department] for their efforts to look at issues of energy conservation and savings."

As energy costs soar, the Cornell campus is facing a winter of challenge. This is the third in a series of stories the Chronicle will present showing the extent of these rising costs and describing how the Cornell community can help keep them under control.