Hostname: page-component-55f67697df-px5tt Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2025-05-10T10:13:17.431Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

RESEARCH ARTICLE: A Greenhouse Gas Inventory as a Measure of Sustainability for an Urban Public Research University

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 April 2010

Cynthia Klein-Banai ,
Thomas L. Theis ,
Thomas A. Brecheisen  and
Alona Banai
Cynthia Klein-Banai*
Affiliation:
Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
Thomas L. Theis
Affiliation:
Institute of Environmental Science and Policy, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
Thomas A. Brecheisen
Affiliation:
Civil and Materials Engineering, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
Alona Banai
Affiliation:
Center for Urban Environmental Research & Policy, Loyola University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
*
Address correspondence to: Cynthia Klein-Banai, Office of Sustainability, University of Illinois at Chicago, 1140 South Paulina Street, MC 996, Chicago, IL 60612; (phone) 312-996-3968; (e-mail) [email protected]
Get access

Abstract

Greenhouse gas (GHG) inventories are becoming a common measure of environmental impact and sustainability for institutions. The University of Illinois in Chicago (UIC) prepared a GHG inventory for fiscal years 2004–2008. UIC conducted a commuter survey to obtain data regarding the commuting habits of its faculty, staff, and students. In fiscal year 2008, UIC's carbon footprint was not significantly higher than the 2004 emissions (275,000 vs. 273,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalents, respectively). For 2008, the largest source of emissions was buildings (83%), followed by commuting (16%) and waste (1%). When compared to 85 other doctorate-granting universities, UIC's gross emissions per square foot (21.4%) are lower than average. The variation in the emissions over the five years studied is largely influenced by the amount of electricity purchased and the mix of sources of that electricity (i.e., nuclear vs. coal). Conducting a baseline GHG inventory can serve as a measure of progress toward more sustainable practices within an institution and as a tool for developing goals, strategies and policies to reduce emissions.

Environmental Practice 12:35–47 (2010)

Type
Features
Information
Environmental Practice , Volume 12 , Issue 1 , March 2010 , pp. 35 - 47
Copyright
Copyright © National Association of Environmental Professionals 2010

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Article purchase

Temporarily unavailable

References

American College & University Presidents Climate Commitment (ACUPCC). 2007. A Call for Climate Leadership: Progress and Opportunities in Addressing the Defining Challenge of Our Time. Second Nature, Boston, 18 pp. Available at http://www2.presidentsclimatecommitment.org/pdf/climate_leadership.pdf (accessed September 13, 2009).Google Scholar
American College & University Presidents' Climate Commitment (ACUPCC). 2008a. Frequently Asked Questions. Second Nature, Boston, 1 p. Available at http://www.presidentsclimatecommitment.org/about/mission-history (accessed October 10, 2009).Google Scholar
American College & University Presidents' Climate Commitment (ACUPCC). 2008b. Mission and History. Second Nature, Boston. Available at http://www.presidentsclimatecommitment.org/about/mission-history (accessed October 10, 2009).Google Scholar
American College & University Presidents' Climate Commitment (ACUPCC). 2009. ACUPCC Reporting System. Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education, Lexington, KY, 14 pp. Available at http://acupcc.aashe.org/ (accessed February 2, 2010).Google Scholar
Architecture 2030. 2009. A Hidden Culprit. In The Building Sector. Architecture 2030, Sante Fe, NM. Available at http://www.architecture2030.org/current_situation/building_sector.html (accessed October 4, 2009).Google Scholar
Bardaglio, P., and Putman, A.. 2009. Boldly Sustainable: Hope and Opportunity for Higher Education in the Age of Climate Change. National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO), Washington, DC, 234 pp.Google Scholar
California Climate Action Registry (CCAR). 2009, January.General Reporting Protocol, version 3.1. CCAR, Los Angeles. Available at http://www.climateregistry.org/tools/protocols/general-reporting-protocol.html.Google Scholar
Center for Neighborhood Technology (CNT). 2008. Chicago Greenhouse Gas Emissions: An Inventory, Forecast, and Mitigation Analysis for Chicago and the Metropolitan Region. CNT, Chicago, 118 pp. Available at http://www.chicagoclimateaction.org/filebin/pdf/report/FINALALL091708_1-118.pdf (accessed November 22, 2009).Google Scholar
Chicago Climate Exchange (CCX). 2007. Greenhouse Gas Emission Factors for Direct Emission Sources. CCX, Chicago, 5 pp. Available at http://www.chicagoclimatex.com/docs/misc/GHG_Emission_Factors.pdf (accessed November 24, 2009).Google Scholar
Chicago Transit Authority (CTA). 2008. CTA Thanks Customers for Achieving Ridership Milestone. CTA, Chicago, 1 p. Available at http://www.transitchicago.com/news/default.aspx?action=displaynewspostingdetail&pg=9&ArticleId=2219 (accessed October 5, 2009).Google Scholar
Climate Registry. 2008, May.General Reporting Protocol for the Voluntary Reporting Program, version 1.1. Climate Registry, Los Angeles, 210 pp. Available at http://www.theclimateregistry.org/downloads/GRP.pdf (accessed February 3, 2010).Google Scholar
Eagan, D.J., Calhoun, T., Schott, J., and Dayana, P.. 2008. Guide to Climate Action Planning: Pathways to a Low-Carbon Campus. National Wildlife Federation, Reston, VA, 48 pp. Available at http://www.nwf.org/Global-Warming/Campus-Solutions/Resources/Reports/Guide-to-Climate-Action-Planning.aspx (accessed February 3, 2010).Google Scholar
Energy Information Administration (EIA). 2009. Independent Statistics and Analysis. EIA, Washington, DC. Available at http://www.eia.doe.gov/environment.html (accessed September 23, 2009).Google Scholar
Europa. 2008. The Kyoto Protocol. Europa, Copenhagen. Available at http://ec.europa.eu/environment/climat/kyoto.htm (accessed September 23, 2009).Google Scholar
Hough, I., Kowalski, J., Roby, C., Taft, T.Y., and Weil, L.. 2008. Campus Carbon Calculator User's Guide, version 6.2. Clean Air–Cool Plant, Portsmouth, NH, 43 pp.Google Scholar
Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC). 2009. Environmental Disclosure Statements. ICC, Springfield, IL. Available at http://www.icc.illinois.gov/electricity/environmentaldisclosure.aspx (accessed September 13, 2009).Google Scholar
Klein-Banai, C. 2007. Greenhouse Gas Inventory for the University of Illinois at Chicago. University of Illinois, Chicago, 14 pp. Available at http://www.uic.edu/sustainability/reports/Appendix%206%20GHGEmissionsFY2005-2006.pdf (accessed November 21, 2009).Google Scholar
Mace, C. 2008, August.Carbon on Campus. American School & University, Overland Park, KS. Available at http://asumag.com/green/carbon_campus_acupcc_ghg/index1.html.Google Scholar
Rappaport, A., and Creighton, S.H.. 2007. Degrees That Matter: Climate Change and the University. MIT Press, Cambridge, MA, 391 pp.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rypdal, K., and Winiwarter, W.. 2001. Uncertainties in Greenhouse Gas Emission Inventories: Evaluation, Comparability and Implications. Environmental Science and Policy 4:107–116.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Simpson, W., ed. 2008. The Green Campus: Meeting the Challenge of Environmental Sustainability. APPA, Alexandria, VA, 361 pp.Google Scholar
Simpson, W. 2009. Cool Campus! A How-to Guide for College and University Climate Action Planning, Barnes, N., Dautremont-Smith, J., Nelson, T. and Zwicker, B., eds. Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE), Lexington, KY. Available at http://www.aashe.org/wiki/climate-planning-guide.Google Scholar
Tufts Climate Initiative. 2002. Method for Conducting a Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory for Colleges and Universities. Tufts Institute of the Environment, Medford, MA, 21 pp. Available at http://www.yale.edu/sustainability/necsc/Climate%20change%20inventory/InventoryMethods%20tufts.pdf.Google Scholar
UIC News Bureau. 2009. UIC Quick Facts. University of Illinois, Chicago. Available at http://tigger.uic.edu/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/newsbureau/cgi-bin/index.cgi?to=QuickFacts (accessed October 7, 2009).Google Scholar
UIC Office of Sustainability. 2009. UIC Climate Action Plan. University of Illinois, Chicago, 52 pp. Available at http://sustainability.uic.edu (accessed November 29, 2009).Google Scholar
World Business Council for Sustainable Development and World Resources Institute (WBCSD/WRI). 2001. The Greenhouse Gas Protocol: A Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard. WBCSD/WRI, Washington, DC, 64 pp. Available at http://www.wbcsd.org/web/publications/ghg-protocol.pdf (accessed September 13, 2009).Google Scholar