MEADVILLE, Pa. – Nov. 14, 2006 – Allegheny College's annual purchase of wind-generated electrical power has qualified it as a Green Power Partner by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The college has purchased wind energy, which now makes up 10 percent of its annual power usage, since 2002. That percentage is equivalent to 1,202-megawatt hours (MWh) per year.

The EPA Green Power Partnership, a voluntary program helping to increase the use of green power among leading organizations in the U.S., has over 600 partners voluntarily purchasing more than 5 million MWh of green power.

According to EPA calculations, Allegheny's purchase of 1,202 MWh of green power is equivalent to removing 144 cars from the road for an entire year or planting 224 acres of trees.

In addition to the purchase of wind energy, the college is active in environmental responsibility and sustainability on many other fronts. Organic compost and other treatments rather than chemical fertilizers and pesticides nourish campus grounds. Newly built campus residence halls, which will be LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified, are heated and cooled with the aid of ground-source heat pumps and also feature roofing made of recycled rubber. The college's Center for Economic and Environmental Development, founded in 1997, is considered a leader in the fields of environmental stewardship, environmental education and regional revitalization.