It has been nearly a decade since NC State students, faculty and staff, partnered with third party engineering and economic experts to create the Climate Action Plan (CAP). The plan set out to make NC State climate neutral by 2050 and reach an approximate 20% reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2015. However, the University has fallen short in recent years by continuing to increase their emissions despite their pledges to do otherwise.
NC State was on track to meet their goal of a 20% reduction in GHG emissions, with data from 2010 showing a 7% decrease in GHG emissions. However, according to the 2018 Annual Sustainability Report, NC State’s MTCDE has increased to 319,451 of MTCDE. This is approximately an 18% increase in emissions, which is about the same amount of emission predicted in 2008 by the CAP if the University was to conduct “business as usual”.
In 2008, NC State joined the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment (ACUPCC) and since then, has joined colleges across the country in a pledge to “both recognize the climate impact of their campuses and work to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions,” according to the 2010 Climate Action Plan. Carla Davis, communications coordinator for the University Sustainability Office, said she acknowledges the difficulties of committing to this agreement.
“It’s no small feat to neutralize the climate impact of a large, growing research university,” Davis said. “That’s why we have a Climate Action Plan to guide our efforts. We are working to update the plan so that it incorporates the most recent emissions as well as climate mitigation opportunities.”
The baseline measurement of NC State’s emissions taken in 2008 from the CAP showed that the University released 270,069 metric tons of CO2 equivalent (MTCDE). Of that, 53% was from purchased electricity, 32% was from direct emissions and 15% came from a third group containing air travel, commuting, waste and paper purchases.
NC State extrapolated this data to see how much their GHG emissions would increase if growth was constant and used this data as a reference for future measurements to ensure the goals were being met, according to NC State’s Climate Action Plan.
To meet short term objectives of improving green development, energy conservation, fuel mix and renewables, transportation and waste management, NC State gathered ideas from everyone involved in those areas and it lead to many methods being put in place to reduce GHG emissions across campus.
“Our first step is to avoid emissions-intensive activities as we are able. Then, we aim to reduce emissions by increasing efficiency of campus operations. When possible, we replace high-emission energy sources with reliable, cost-effective low-emission energy sources. Our last step will be offsetting emissions that cannot be eliminated,” Davis said.
The collaborators of CAP emphasized the importance of cultural change in addition to infrastructural improvements for an environmentally friendly campus. Knowing this, they incorporated conservation outreach and behavior changing campaigns to encourage students and faculty around campus to consider alternative commuting methods or more conservational energy use practices, according to the Climate Action Plan.
As for long term plans, NC State plans to cut the majority of emissions through “future technologies,” according to the Climate Action Plan. The Climate Action plan denotes current possibilities for improvement, for example, biomass gasification for stream production on Centennial and Centennial Biomedical campuses, solid waste plasma gasification with cogeneration from Centennial Biomedical and through completely removing the need to burn natural gas by implementing renewable energy sources. For now, though, Davis reminded students how they can get involved.
“Campus energy use accounts for nearly 60% of NC State’s greenhouse gas emissions,” Davis said. “Whenever we reduce energy use on campus, we are mitigating our climate impact. Simple actions, such as turning off light switches when you leave a room and pulling the plug on electronics not in use, can help reduce energy consumption and emissions on campus.”
Despite the University’s shortcomings in reducing emissions, Lindsay Batchelor, interim director of the University Sustainability Office, said that she remains optimistic to reach their climate neutrality goal by 2050.
“Since the Climate Action Plan was first completed in 2010, the general community understanding as well as personal connection to climate change has grown substantially,” Batchelor said. “It is rewarding to see how many people have taken an interest in helping work toward this goal. Reducing our climate impact is truly a task that requires campus collaboration and engagement across the university.”
