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A Historical Perspective
Cornell’s Climate Action Plan (CAP) creates a framework for understanding, protecting, and preserving our climate through research, education, and public engagement.
1. A target date for achieving climate neutrality as soon as possible. 2. Interim targets for goals and actions that will lead to climate neutrality. 3. Actions to make climate neutrality and sustainability a part of the curriculum and other educational experience for all students. 4. Actions to expand research or other efforts necessary to achieve climate neutrality. 5. Mechanisms for tracking progress on goals and actions.” The Cornell Climate Action Plan Update 2013 & Roadmap 2014-2015 incorporates Cornell’s strategies for advancing our carbon neutrality goal and integrating sustainability into students’ educational experience, as well as strategies to create, test, and deploy innovative solutions to preserve our climate for future generations.
Because of Ezra Cornell’s foresight to create an institution where any student can find instruction in any study, Cornell is uniquely qualified to be the international leader in developing solutions to climate change and sustainability.” – Dan Miller, Managing Director, The Roda Group, College of Engineering class of 1978
While greenhouse gas reduction has been a critical focus from the inception of the CAP, this update recognizes the importance of Cornell’s education, research, and public engagement activities – which are at the core of everything we do – and highlights those opportunities more prominently through the Innovation and Leadership Pillars of the plan. While we work to reduce the carbon footprint of our campus, we also need to educate the next generation of thought leaders and find research-based solutions to global climate challenges. These efforts are mutually beneficial and critically important. Making climate neutrality a part of the Cornell curriculum and a focus of Cornell research advances the mission of the university and is fundamental to the long-term success of our CAP. Our intent is to expand the breadth and depth of CAP actions which focus on education, research, and public engagement over time.
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The CAP is more than simply a “carbon” action plan. The American College & University Presidents’ Climate Commitment (http://acupcc.org/about/ commitment) states that all signatories will: “Within two years of signing this document, develop an institutional action plan for becoming climate neutral, which will include:
1. AVOID
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All of the CAP actions are designed to be consistent with these THREE PILLARS, or guiding principles: NEUTRALITY: Reduce Cornell’s carbon emissions to net zero by the year 2050 or sooner. INNOVATION: Create a living laboratory for low-impact behaviors, climate education, and research. LEADERSHIP: Lead by example on campus and exercise climate leadership beyond campus.
What’s really important… is that we develop forms of adaptation but never allow these to take focus away from long term changes that might lead to solutions. All students must become better educated and must mobilize – it’s crucial.” – Karen Pinkus, Professor, Italian and Comparative Literature and Faculty Fellow with the Atkinson Center for a Sustainable Future
Neutrality
Reduce Cornell’s carbon emissions to net zero by the year 2050 or sooner.
The CAP positions Cornell on a path to neutrality through a four-tiered approach combining: 1) avoidance of future energy use, 2) reduction of carbon pollution, 3) replacement of high-carbon fuels with low or zero-carbon sources, and 4) offsetting of unavoidable emissions. Cornell’s 2008, 2010, and 2012 greenhouse gas (GHG) inventories as reported to the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment are posted on the ACUPCC website at http://rs.acupcc.org. For consistency in reporting, annual emissions are reported in the following three categories:
carbon–intensive activities.
By Lanny Joyce, Cornell University Director of Energy Management
2. REDUCE
In 2001, Cornell students concerned about global climate change and the U.S. refusal to adopt the Kyoto Treaty asked the university administration to adopt the Kyoto carbon reduction goal – as if Cornell were the U.S. government. At the time, we had no idea what our carbon emissions were, nor did we have any idea what might be needed to reach such a goal. Undeterred, members of the KyotoNOW! student group chose Earth Day 2001 to formally protest, chain themselves to the trees surrounding Day Hall and to furnishings inside the building, and declare that they would not leave until the administration adopted the Kyoto target.
by doing what you do more efficiently.
3.REPLACE high-carbon energy sources with low-carbon energy sources.
4. OFFSET
those emissions that cannot be eliminated by the above.
Scope 1 – On-Site Combustion: Direct and fugitive emissions including on-site electrical, heating, and cooling generation, as well as fleet vehicle fuel use. Scope 2 – Purchased Electricity: Indirect emissions occurring as a result of purchased electricity. Scope 3 – Commuting and Air Travel: Indirect emissions occurring as a consequence of commuting and university-sponsored air travel. For more information refer to the World Resource Institute GHG Protocol (http://www.wri.org/project/ghg-protocol). Since the 2009 CAP was released, Cornell has reduced GHG emissions by nearly 101,000 metric tons, an improvement of roughly 32%. This improvement is due to many factors, most significantly the high level of performance of the Cornell Combined Heat and Power Plant and a decision to eliminate all coal combustion at the University. The 2009 CAP assumed that coal would not be phased out until about 2030, when retirement of the existing coal boilers was planned. Cornell’s “Beyond Coal” action serves as an indicator of the strength of our commitment to the carbon neutrality goal. See pages 17–18 of this report for details about these Completed Actions.
Greenhouse Gas Breakdown Air Travel
350,000
Commuting
300,000
Purchased Electricity
250,000
On-Site Combustion
200,000 150,000 100,000 50,000 0
GHG Emissions (metric tons CO2e)
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THREE PILLARS
Way Beyond the Baseline: E
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The 2012 carbon footprint for the campus was 218,000 metric tons of CO2-e. Roughly 142,000 tons were attributable to On-Site Combustion, 17,000 tons to Purchased Electricity, and 59,000 tons to Commuting and Air Travel.
Students rally outside Day Hall in 2001 for adoption of the Kyoto Protocol.
Cornell’s Utilities and Energy Management staff quickly created a carbon inventory at the request of Senior Vice President Hal Craft, and debated the likelihood that Cornell could adopt such a goal and actually achieve it. After intense discussion, SVP Craft drafted a letter to the students which committed the university to “striving toward a Kyoto compliance goal.” This commitment made national news and put the Cornell students at the head of a national movement in higher education to get colleges and universities to strive toward carbon reduction. Adoption of the Kyoto target meant that Cornell needed to reduce 1990 baseline emissions from the Central Energy Plant fuel combustion and electricity purchases by 7% by the year 2012. SVP Craft asked Lanny Joyce to lead this effort as the new Manager of Engineering, Planning, and Energy Management in the new department of Utilities and Energy Management. Craft’s letter also stipulated that the university administration would maintain an open and transparent relationship with students. The Kyoto Task Team was created in 2001, consisting of students, staff, and faculty who met every other week to evaluate progress.
FY2008 FY2010 FY2012
9 | CLIMATE ACTION PLAN UPDATE 2013
2013 CLIMATE ACTION PLAN UPDATE
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