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MUNCIE, Ind. (AP) — Ball State University officials are preparing to stop burning coal at the campus' steam plant as the school pushes ahead with its partial conversion to geothermal energy.
Ball State Engineering Director Jim Lowe says the Muncie campus' four coal-fired boilers dating to the 1940s will be shut down by Thursday. When they do, it will bring an end to the school's annual burning of up to 36,000 tons of coal that released sulfur dioxide and other air pollutants.
Ball State is investing $80 million to drill about 3,600 boreholes for a geothermal system that uses buried pipes to tap the Earth's natural heat storage capacity to both heat and cool.
The school will also continue using three natural gas-fired boilers to produce steam for heating and hot water.
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