California State University Northridge later this month will become home to the single largest fuel cell power plant at any university in the world. The school on Feb. 23 is dedicating a 1-megawatt fuel cell power plant that will be used to power university facilities and heat buildings, showers and the University Student Union’s swimming pool. In a statement, Tom Brown, director of CSUN’s physical plant management, said the new plant not not only provides environmentally friendly power to the campus, but also ensures that the university can sustain continued growth and improve programs while remaining one of the most energy-efficient schools in the state. “By incorporating the fuel cell plant into the campus operations, we are reducing the university’s CO2 emissions into the environment by 60 million pounds during its lifetime,” Brown said. The $3 million price tag was offset by up to $2.25 million in incentives from Southern California Gas Co. and $500,000 in incentives from Los Angeles Department of Water and Power. Dedication of the facility takes place at 9 a.m. on Matador Walk, in front of the plant on the east side of the campus, just south of the Sol Center off Zelzah Street.
