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Colleges of agriculture authorized to receive U.S. Department of Agriculture funding have serious deferred maintenance needs, a study by Sightlines and the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities has found.
The roughly 100 agriculture colleges have $8.4 billion in deferred maintenance of their buildings and supporting facilities, which has contributed to a 29 percent erosion of their value. The deterioration comes in many forms -- roofs that leak, foundations that crack, doors and windows that don’t keep the heat in or cold out, and HVAC, electrical and plumbing systems that fail -- and negatively affects the functioning of key research areas, like labs and animal care facilities.
“These study results confirm the suspected magnitude of a problem that must be addressed if our institutions are going to continue to be able to conduct the high-quality research that is at the cutting edges of the science and education enterprises,” said Ian L. Maw, vice president of food, agriculture and natural resources at APLU.
