温室气体排放追踪

The carbon emissions from our campus operations, 购买决策, 能源, 和 campus-wide individual behaviors impact climate change. 为了减缓, 停止, 和 mitigate Smith’s climate change impacts we must track, 监控, 最小化我们的 greenhouse gas emissions.

签署后 Second Nature Presidents Climate Commitment in 2007, 澳门葡京博彩软件 began an inventory of greenhouse gas emissions beginning in 1990.  This inventory tracks our scope 1 和 2 emissions, 和 a few components of scope 3 emissions, including waste.  

自2004年以来, our designated baseline  和 peak emissions year, we’ve decreased our net emissions by 29% through the installation of our co-generation power plant, converting from #6 fuel oil to fossil fuel gas for heat, energy efficiency measures, 和 efficient new buildings.

Timeline showing greenhouse gas emission by year. 下图所示.

A. Transition to co-generation power plant 

Early stages of work to reduce GHGs focused on re-powering our 1947 power plant, 以燃油为动力, 给一个新人, 更清洁的, 和 more efficient co-generation plant.  热电联产, also called Combined Heat 和 Power (CHP), 是有效的吗?, clean 和 reliable approach to generating power 和 thermal energy from a single fuel source, in our case fossil fuel gas. Smith’s cogeneration system produces electricity for the campus 和 the byproduct, 废热, is used to create steam that in turn heats campus buildings. The cogeneration power plant became fully implemented in 2008. 平均每年, co-gen produces around 75 percent of the college’s electricity, thus reducing the college’s energy costs 和 emissions of greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming. In 2013, the plant became capable of starting up completely without being connected to the utility grid.

B. New Science Center: Ford Hall

While constructing our science center slightly increased our emissions, the building is LEED Gold certified 和, 随着时间的推移, has conserved energy 和 contributed to our emissions reductions attributed to energy efficiency.

C. 能源效率 和 Renewable Energy

请参阅我们的 碳中和 和 energy efficiency 和 conservation webpages for more information on projects related to these reductions.

D. 新型冠状病毒肺炎

During the 新型冠状病毒肺炎 p和emic, carbon emissions were dramatically decreased by setting many buildings to unoccupied mode. Additionally, employee 旅行 was reduced or eliminated.

This graph shows Smith's 40 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions since our baseline year of 2004.

教师 和 Student 研究 into Scope 3 Emissions

In addition to commuting, 空中旅行, 和浪费, we have robust faculty 和 student research around other scope 3 emissions categories - specifically, food purchasing 和 construction. Reporting in these areas is not required in our carbon commitment 和 in general, accounting for emissions associated with these categories globally 是具有挑战性的. However, we use this challenge as an exciting opportunity for engaging faculty 和 student research. Several key projects in the past few years have investigated 和 illuminated the following:

  1. 2018年的env 312 顶石项目, researched by Cara Dietz ‘18, 18岁的埃莉安娜, 格雷·李18, estimated the college’s total scope 3 emissions 和 found construction, 旅行, 和 food to be our highest emitting areas; 和 thus, the top three areas to prioritize further research around accounting 和 mitigation. 
  2. 2020年的env 312 顶石项目, researched by Emelyn Chiang ‘20, 艾丹·科芬·尼斯，20岁, 弗朗西斯·邓肯，20岁, 凯尔西·汤，20岁, used the recommendations from the 2018 ENV 312 group to conduct further research around food purchasing 和 potential GHG emission reductions through milk 和 beef substitutes. 这个项目 赢得了 the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) campus sustainability research award.
  3. 2020年的env 312 顶石项目, researched by Larissa Holl和 ‘21, 丽贝卡·米勒21岁, 还有莉迪亚·谢达，21岁, used the recommendations from the 2018 ENV 312 group to conduct further research into how the college might account for embodied carbon emissions in new construction, 使用new 尼尔森图书馆 作为案例研究. 
  4. As a 2020 CEEDS 教师 研究 Fellow, Associate Professor of Economics Susan Sayre is researching scope 3 carbon emissions that result from food purchasing 和 the degree to which communicating food carbon footprint shifts student food preference. 研究 findings will shape Smith’s food messaging strategies in order to further mitigate the impact of carbon emissions associated with Smith’s campus operations.