Columbus State Community College. Climate Action Plan

Transcription

1 Columbus State Community College Climate Action Plan September 2009

2 Contents Introduction... 3 Commitment... 3 Community Education... 4 Carbon Footprint... 4 Accounting for Student and Employee Commuting CSCC Results without student and employee commuting... 8 Historical Emissions Inventory Results Mitigation Strategies Columbus State Community College Climate Action Plan 2

3 Introduction In 2007 CSCC s President signed the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment (ACUPCC), a voluntary agreement for higher education institutions to reduce impacts of climate change and work towards climate neutrality. Climate neutrality is the balancing of carbon emissions and sequestration. CSCC will work toward this challenge through cost efficient emissions reductions to minimize its impact from campus operations. Emissions will be offset through forest sequestration and investing in local climate reduction projects. CSCC s emissions inventory has shown opportunities for direct and indirect emissions reductions. Direct emissions will be reduced through sustainable building management, while indirect emissions can primarily be reduced through student and employee commute solutions including promotion of alternative and public transportation. Climate change has been called the greatest challenge for humanity. Efforts to reduce human impact on climate change have been driven at a variety of levels from grassroots campaigns, personal efforts as well as government and educational institutions. CSCC is a strong leader in providing affordable education as well as demonstrating its environmental values through progressive policies and efficient campus operations management. Carbon emission reductions will be driven by CSCC s Energy Efficiency Plan as well as its Sustainability Policy. Commitment As a citizen of a complex ecological system, Columbus State Community College is committed to doing its part to sustain the environment for future generations. The college shall engage in financially-sound academic and operational activities that will result in the reduction of solid waste, pollution, and energy consumption - CSCC Sustainability Policy As an early signatory to the ACUPCC and a leader in energy efficiency planning, Columbus State Community College (CSCC) has led educational institutions in the pursuit of sustainability. CSCC is focusing on high impact, financially efficient reductions in emissions to achieve its goals and targets. Building energy consumption is the primary driver of Scope 1 & 2 emissions, thus reductions will come from lighting retrofits, campus HVAC system upgrades, computer system energy consumption optimization, and vending machine controls. CSCC will continue to develop its long-term climate strategy through future building efficiency initiatives, student/employee incentive programs to reduce Scope 3 transportation emissions as well as investment in local renewable energy and forestry initiatives to ultimately achieve climate neutrality. CSCC has set short and long-term emissions reduction targets. CSCC aims to reduce emissions 20% of baseline fiscal year 2004 by 2014 and 80% of baseline emissions by In order to ensure these targets are met and emissions projects are successfully implemented, several initiatives have been developed to promote CSCC s institutional commitment to sustainability and emissions reductions. The Sustainability Committee was created to advance CSCC s sustainability programs on an ongoing basis. The Committee includes students, staff, faculty and administrators representing a broad cross section of disciplines. The Board of Trustees and the President authorized a Sustainability Policy to declare CSCC s commitment and dedication to the principles of sustainability. In new construction, CSCC has committed to striving to build to U.S. Green Building Council s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design s Columbus State Community College Climate Action Plan 3

4 (LEED) silver standard. CSCC also works with the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) as well as the Energy Star program to reduce its environmental impact. Community Education In 2008, CSCC was one of only 65 schools in the United States recognized by the National Wildlife Federation as an Exemplary School for Having Recruiting Programs and Offering Interdisciplinary Degrees in Environmental or Sustainability Studies. CSCC offers an Associate of Applied Science degree in Environmental Science/Safety and Health and a Certificate in Sustainable Building. Construction, environmental design, and applied science are integrated into these programs. The certification includes course work in the environment, architectural and LEED design, and construction management. The use of energy modeling simulation packages are introduced in the program, allowing students to compare multiple design schemes to determine which designs optimize climate and site conditions. Arts and Sciences faculty integrate sustainability into courses that include geology, geography, biology/environmental science, and chemistry. Faculty have engaged in discussions about broadening the curriculum, and two faculty members on CSCC s Sustainability Committee are actively engaging faculty in discussions on and activities related to sustainability. A major component of CSCC s long-term climate reductions will involve the participation of the CSCC and greater Columbus community. The primary source of CSCC emissions is indirect emissions from employee and student commuting, thus meaningful reductions will require promotion of alternative modes of transportation, behavioral changes and community education. In addition to program marketing and incentives to promote car sharing/car pooling, CSCC will work with the Central Ohio Transit Authority (COTA) to make public transportation available to core living areas for students and employees that are currently not well served. Carbon Footprint It is estimated that CSCC operations emitted 62,462 MT eco 2 from July 1, 2006 through June 30, This is a decrease of 4.9% over emissions from The primary drivers of emissions decreases are waste sent to the landfill (20.2% decrease), electricity usage (9.8% decrease) and commuting miles (3.3% decrease) which comprise 0.9%, 36.1%, and 55.4% of total emissions respectively. A summary of FY 2007 emissions by category and WBCSD/WRI (2004) scope are presented in the table below. Results for FY 2004 through FY 2006 can be found in the Historical Emissions Inventory Results section below. Columbus State Community College Climate Action Plan 4

5 Source of Emissions MT eco 2 Proportion of Total Scope 1 Natural Gas 4, % Gasoline % Sub Total 4, % Scope 2 Electricity 22, % Scope 3 Car Vehicle Miles 34, % Waste Landfilled % Flights % Bus Vehicle Miles % Subtotal 35, % Total Emissions 62, % Columbus State Community College Climate Action Plan 5

6 Accounting for Student and Employee Commuting A major component of CSCC s carbon footprint is emissions from student and employee commuting. As seen in Figure 1, the primary source of emissions is Car Vehicle Miles (55.4%) from commuting and business travel. Other significant contributors to overall emissions are emissions from building electricity consumption (36.1%) and natural gas consumption (7.3%) for building heating and hot water. Other emission sources total 1.2%. Emissions by Category Waste Landfilled 0.9% Natural Gas 7.3% Gasoline 0.3% Flights 0.0% Bus Vehicle Miles 0.0% Electricity 36.1% Car Vehicle Miles 55.4% Figure 1: Emissions by category including student and employee commuting Student commuting (52.9%), buildings (43.9%) and employee commuting (3.0%) are the primary sources of emissions for CSCC when accounting for Scope 3 commuting emissions. Emissions by Source Business Travel 0.2% Athlete Travel 0.1% Student Commuting 52.9% Buildings 43.9% Employee Commuting 3.0% Figure 2: Emissions by source including student and employee commuting The Columbus campus is the main source of CSCC emissions (90.2%). The Westerville Center (2.7%), Dublin (2.3%) and Tolles Technical Center (0.8%) sites are the other three primary sources of emissions. The other sites make up 2.1% of total emissions. Columbus State Community College Climate Action Plan 6

7 Westerville Center 2.7% Distance Classes 1.9% Emissions by Campus Dublin 2.3% Tolles Tech 0.8% Other Sites 2.1% Columbus 90.2% Figure 3: Emissions by CSCC campus and sites including student and employee commuting Indirect or Scope 3 emissions resulting from CSCC operations were the largest due to the inclusion of student and employee commuting (56%). Scope 1 emissions are direct emissions resulting from combustion. Scope 2 emissions are the indirect emissions from building electricity consumption. Emissions by Scope Scope 1 8% Scope 3 56% Scope 2 36% Figure 4: Breakdown of emissions by WBCSD scope including student and employee commuting Columbus State Community College Climate Action Plan 7

8 2007 CSCC Results without student and employee commuting While a major component of CSCC s emissions are a result of student and employee commuting, these emissions are not under direct control of CSCC administrators. Thus, it is important to understand the magnitude and composition of emissions under the direct control of CSCC. Figure 5 shows a breakdown of emissions related to emissions that directly result from CSCC operations. Emissions by Category Waste Landfilled 2.0% Natural Gas 16.2% Gasoline 0.6% Car Vehicle Miles 0.4% Flights 0.1% Bus Vehicle Miles 0.1% Electricity 80.7% Figure 5: Emissions by category without student and employee commuting Buildings are the primary source of emissions related to CSCC operations. The emissions are the result of combustion of natural gas for heating and hot water as well as indirect emissions resulting from electricity consumption. Emissions by Source Business Travel 0.4% Athlete Travel 0.1% Buildings 99.4% Figure 6: Emissions by source without student and employee commuting Columbus State Community College Climate Action Plan 8

9 Emissions by Campus and Sites Westerville Center 2.2% Distance Classes 0.0% Dublin 1.1% Tolles Tech 1.9% Other Sites 0.5% Columbus 94.4% Figure 7: Breakdown of emissions by CSCC campus without student and employee commuting Without student and employee commuting, Scope 2 emissions from electricity consumption (81%) are the primary source of emissions from CSCC operations. Scope 3 emissions are related to business and athletic travel. Emissions by Scope Scope 3 2% Scope 1 17% Scope 2 81% Figure 8: Breakdown of emissions by WBCSD scope without student and employee commuting Columbus State Community College Climate Action Plan 9

10 MT eco2 Historical Emissions Inventory Results Emissions from previous years of CSCC operation were calculated and are summarized in the table below. Some data gaps existed that were filled by making the appropriate assumptions that are outlined above in the Data Sources and Assumptions section. FY 2004 through 2006 emissions resulting directly from CSCC operations (Scope 1 & 2) were 24,601, 27,238, and 29,172 MT eco 2 respectively. Current Scope 1 & 2 emissions represent a 10.7% increase over the baseline FY 2004 emissions at 27,244 MT eco 2. Fiscal Year Category Car Vehicle Miles 38,162 35,416 35,778 34,612 Electricity 21,619 23,519 24,998 22,552 Natural Gas 2,831 3,567 4,023 4,531 Waste Landfilled Gasoline Bus Vehicle Miles Flights Totals 63,410 63,242 65,698 62,462 The table above shows a breakdown of all categories of emissions accounted for during the FY 2004 through FY 2007 emissions. The graph below shows existing data from FY 2004 through FY The emissions trend line shows a 1.5% reduction of emissions from FY 2004 to FY Actual Emissions and Linear Trend Actual Data Emissions Trend 70,000 60,000 50,000 40,000 30,000 20,000 10,000 0 Columbus State Community College Climate Action Plan 10

11 Mitigation Strategies CSCC s carbon emissions mitigation strategy is a 40 year plan to efficiently work toward climate neutrality. A flexible and sustainable approach will allow for steady emissions reductions over the life of the plan. This approach will also enable iterative planning updates to account for changes in technology, economy, campus community behaviors, and regulations. A summary of the plan will be promoted throughout the campus with guidelines for behavioral changes to empower individuals and the community to make a difference. This plan will be revisited every five years over the lifetime of the plan to track progress and ensure its success. Below is an outline of the emissions reductions projects for CSCC that focus on building systems. Buildings comprise over 99% of Scope 1 & 2 emissions while also accounting for 44% of total emissions. Savings Project Description Total Project Annual Payback BTU kwh MT eco2 $/MT eco2 MT eco2/ Cost Savings (yrs) Payback yr A Vending Machine Control $ 30,000 $ 7, , B Exhaust Fans $ 294,022 $ 32, , , C Parking Garage Lighting $ 439,648 $ 43, , , D Building Automation $ 800,000 $ 96, ,020 1,177,860 1, E Computer Optimization $ 250,000 $ 60, , , F Laboratory Hoods $ 700,000 $ 87, ,007 1,760,051 1, G Mechanical Systems Upgrade $ 1,000,000 $ 100, ,333 2,441,569 2, H Lighting Retrofit $ 1,176,508 $ 162, ,259 2,712,887 2, I Demand Control Ventilation $ 564,000 $ 112, ,744 2,268,992 2, J Variable Frequency Drives $ 72,000 $ 49, , , Totals $ 5,326,178 $ 753,411 45,482 13,326,226 11,887 Project costs total 5.3 million with an average payback of 6.7 years. The cost efficiency of the project portfolio is outlined in Figure 9. The MT eco2 per payback year shows both the high impact reductions of emissions for projects with large savings for the capital invested. Figure 10 shows the impact of the projects listed above on emissions trajectory. With both the projects outlined above and the proposed long-term reduction projects, CSCC is on track to achieve its emission reduction goals. The proposed long-term reductions of scope 1 and 2 emissions focus on energy efficiency of buildings and sourcing renewable energy. By providing and promoting alternative and public transportation as well as reducing single occupancy vehicle travel, CSCC will reduce Scope 3 emissions from student and employee commuting. CSCC will also invest in local urban forestry property to offset remaining emissions. In addition to reducing carbon emissions, the polyculture forest will serve as an educational laboratory for students to learn about the complex benefits of forest ecology, carbon sequestration, water cycling and the resulting impacts on urban ecology. CSCC s mitigation plan represents a broad, diverse and efficient approach to carbon emissions reduction. Enacting this plan will provide a model for the Columbus community to emulate and will also engage the CSCC community to not reduce its negative impact, but increase its positive impact. By implementing local forestry projects, CSCC is not only acting as a responsible steward of its urban environment, it is leaving a legacy of proactive response to our greatest challenge. Columbus State Community College Climate Action Plan 11

12 Figure 9: Summary of high impact and financially efficient projects Columbus State Community College Climate Action Plan 12

13 Figure 10: Emissions trends and mitigation project impacts Columbus State Community College Climate Action Plan 13