A report that is the culmination of seven years of research from 1997 to 2004 has been discussed at various town hall-style meetings hosted by UB Green.
At the Climate Action Report meetings, Walter Simpson, director of UB Green and UB energy officer, and Jim Simon, associate environmental educator of UB Green, focused on UB's role in lowering the school's impact on the environment.
In order to establish a plan of action and investigate the current trends of UB's effect on the environment, they looked comprehensively at the amount of greenhouse gas emissions that UB generates.
The report shows that over the course of a year, UB emits about 143,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalencies, a measurement that includes all types of greenhouse gas emissions. This number is equivalent to the emissions given off by 25,000 cars over the same time period, according to Simon.
"UB is the size of a small city, so we're certainly responsible for a large part of the emissions [in this area]," Simon said. "So, we could be doing worse."
The study shows that UB's emissions due to electricity make up 50 percent of UB's overall emissions. Transportation, and heating and cooling make up for the balance of the emissions, with a contribution of a little over 20 percent each.
"What we found was that the emissions and energy from our buildings were the most significant, followed by transportation," Simon said.
To conduct this study, UB Green partnered with University Facilities to get reports on the electricity used in the residence halls and academic buildings, Campus Parking and Transportation Services to find out how many cars commute daily to UB, and the Office of Institutional Analysis for demographic data.
This data was analyzed using an E-Calculator, which was provided by Clean Air Cool Planet, a non-profit, national company that specializes in helping colleges and businesses lower their impact on the environment.
Over the course of the seven years quantified by the study, the greenhouse gas emissions produced has decreased to 11.5 percent per UB community member.
"We have the advantage of having a long history of supporting environmental stewardship," Simon said. "We're on the right track, but we can always do better."
According to Simon, UB has been involved in efforts to be environmentally friendly for the past 20 years or more. The University is continuing that tradition at new levels in various ways, including the recent commitment to become a climate-neutral institution and the "Greener Shade of Blue" campaign. President John B. Simpson signed the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment Spring 2007, finalizing his pledge to keep track of the progress UB has made in reducing its greenhouse gas emissions.
"As we grow as a campus and university, buildings from now on will be more efficient, and will be LEED certified and meet certain criteria, which is very important," Simon said.
The LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Green Building Rating System "encourages and accelerates global adoption of sustainable green building and development practices through the creation of universally understood and accepted tools and performance criteria," according to the US Green Building Council Web site.
Some criteria include using low-emitting materials for painting, carpet and adhesives and providing a lighting system that will allow those using certain rooms to adjust the necessary light according to what is needed for the task, according to the Version 2.2 Rating System.
In addition to putting together UB's environmental impact in the recent past, the report also includes recommendations as to how UB can become a more sustainable and greener campus.
According to Simon, students can contribute to making UB more environmentally friendly by turning lights off when they leave their apartment or are not using a room. "I think knowing where UB's impact is made is important to know...knowing that could lead students to make the right choices when it comes to...reducing the amount of energy they use," Simon said.
Simpson and Simon explained that through being conscious of the energy used, purchasing green power, building efficient buildings, finding sustainable transportation solutions as well as buying or creating carbon offsets in response to the large carbon footprint we have made already, UB can become a greener campus.
At the first meeting, only one student was in attendance. According to Simon, eight or nine students were present at the Wednesday meeting and UB Green expects a higher turnout during the second week of meetings.
"People [who did attend] seemed interested. There were concerns expressed about recycling and transportation," Simon said.
A goal that UB Green hopes to reach in the future is to increase UB's waste recycling from the current 30 percent to 100 percent post-consumer waste paper.
Simpson also said that the university should offer financial incentives for students who cut back on their energy use and carbon emissions.
"Students who are residents at UB have the chance to make the biggest impact. By living in the dorms students have a tendency to leave all their electronic appliances and lights on, all the time," Simpson said.
Simon also said that students can use UB's shuttle services rather than driving from Ellicott Complex to the Academic Spine, or between North and South campuses.
"Taking the bus, walking, ride sharing, and biking are all good ways to make a difference," he said.
Audience members, mostly comprised of UB faculty, pointed out many ways people could make a difference, including handing out NFTA passes to UB, a priority parking lot for those who choose to carpool, and installing motion sensor lights to turn lights off when no one is in the room.
Nick Kabat, a sophomore political science major, who was the only student in attendance at the Tuesday meeting, said he tries to contribute to making UB green.
"I try to make green choices. I bike [and] I recently have become a vegetarian. Simple things like getting your drinking water from a Brita instead of buying bottled water, replacing your lights with fluorescent bulbs, and educating myself through reading and attending the meetings," Kabat said.
Additional Reporting by Chris Sullivan, Staff Writer.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
