URBANA, Ill., (WCIA) — A building at U of I is being recognized for going green. The Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) building on the north end of campus is the university’s first zero-energy-certified facility.

All of the energy comes from solar panels on the roof and a solar farm in Savoy.

“We have global warming and we’re running out of options so solar power is a great resource,” Hajek said.

Bruce Hajek, the ECE department head said when they started to work on the building in 2014, they had green energy in mind.

It’s not all solar power though, there are also other elements that help save energy.

“There’s baffling so the sun can permeate in the winter to heat the building,” he said. “Plus the window structure. And there’s the air handling systems that are very efficient and the way the heat comes in through all the classrooms.”

It’s also a LEED Platinum-certified building because of its energy efficiency.

Hajek said that researchers at U of I are hoping to expand renewables in the future. He said he’d eventually like to see the whole campus be zero net energy.