Government efforts to cut back on carbon dioxide emissions have paid off at schools and universities, with the campaign helping to save over NT$700 million (US$21.54 million) in electricity costs at educational institutions around the country last year. According to the Ministry of Education (MOE) , 312 universities and colleges, as well as 248 senior high schools and 59 junior high and elementary schools, have been taking part in a carbon reduction campaign since 2007. Comparing the schools' combined consumption levels in 2008 with the figure recorded for 2006, they consumed about 7.8 less electricity last year than they did in 2006, representing savings of more than NT$700 million in electricity costs, according to MOE statistics. Among all the participating schools, vocational senior high schools scored the highest rate of 12.31 percent in slashing carbon emissions, followed by colleges and universities, which recorded an 8.03 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, an environmental protection task force under the MOE said. Senior high schools posted a reduction rate of 7.23 percent, ahead of junior high schools with 6.54 percent and elementary schools with 6.07 percent, it went on. The MOE hopes that all the country's schools and colleges will achieve an average electricity use reduction of 7 percent per year by 2015, it added. Chang Zih-chao, executive secretary of the MOE task force, ascribed inadequate measures and ageing lighting or air conditioning equipment to some schools' failure to cut electricity use. The MOE will allocate more budget to help these schools phase out their inefficient equipment in the coming years, he added. Yuan Ze University was among the 13 green universities selected this year by the MOE for their outstanding performance in cutting back electricity consumption on their campuses. Yuan Ze University has slashed some 4.6 percent off its electricity use this year, saving it some NT$19 million in electricity costs. Wei Jung-chung, head of the privately run university's general affairs department, said it is very important to build a carbon-reducing concept among students. Wei said students have to pay for the lights if they want to play basketball or tennis on school facilities. At the same time, devices are installed in classrooms' air conditioning units and lamps so that they switch off automatically at the end of the class and switch on 10 minutes before the next one starts, he explained. Generally speaking, however, public universities such as National Taiwan University, National Kaohsiung First University of Science and Technology and Taichung University of Education (TUE) were more effective than their private counterparts in cutting back on electricity during the 2007-2008 period, Wei said. The top 21 public universities succeeded in reducing about a total of 15,000 metric tons of greenhouse gas -- equivalent to a saving of NT$44 million in electricity costs, he noted. Yi Cheng-ming, general affairs department director at the TUE, pointed out that in addition to installing automated devices to regulate electricity use, it is of maximum importance to raise carbon reduction awareness among students. To this end, the TUE has personnel periodically patrol the campus to persuade students not to waste electricity, he added. 