The operation of USC's $19 million biomass facility is three years behind schedule. Though Johnson Controls is responsible for getting the plant working and is required to pay USC millions as long as it's not, the fact that USC is associated with this beleaguered project, and the fact that this project is associated with Innovista, makes the university look bad.
Several different operation problems have occurred since the plant opened, including a shutdown for almost a year due to a steam distribution problem in February 2008. The biomass plant is supposed to burn woodchips to create steam to heat USC. Right now it's just burning money, and the only steam we see is the plumes coming out our ears.
All the recent talk about going green needs to be put into action, and the university needs to do everything in its power to ensure that Johnson Controls gets the plant working instead of just writing USC another check.
Green technology was discussed this weekend at a forum held at the Darla Moore School of Business. Political and business experts on the green economy from South Carolina and the United Kingdom discussed the massive opportunity that clean technologies present. One clean technology highlighted was biofuel. Yet no more than a 30 minute walk from the business school there still stands a unrealized opportunity in the form of USC's biomass facility.
The business school is planning to move to a new green building in Innovista, and its neighboring biomass facility should be operational before that move-in date.
Otherwise, USC would just add another bad precedent to an already terrible one.
