UNC Charlotte is beginning to draft a Climate Action Plan to become greenhouse gas neutral.

David Jones, sustainability coordinator in the Office of Facilities Management, noted, the University creates emissions a number of ways, including through the use of natural gas, petroleum and electricity. “The Climate Action Plan identifies potential mitigation strategies the University may employ to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.”

The plan will be developed through a multi-stakeholder approach, said Jones. Five task forces – energy, curriculum, transport, communications and purchasing – will include representation from faculty, staff, students and external entities, such as Duke Energy and the Charlotte Area Transportation System.

“Each task force will look into different mitigation strategies that may be employed at the University. They will prioritize the strategies based on a qualitative matrix, at which point the most viable ones will undergo a quantitative analysis from which a short-, medium- and long-term portfolio of strategies will be selected. Task force committees are open to all faculty, staff and students,” Jones stated.

Development of the Climate Action Plan is a result of the chancellor’s signature of the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment (ACUPC) in October 2009.

“Although the Climate Action Plan is a new undertaking, thinking in a sustainable manner at the University is not,” said Devin Hatley, environmental educator, Office of Waste Reduction and Recycling.   “For starters, the recycling program has been around for almost 20 years, all new buildings are undergoing the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) process, and the automotive fleet has increased its number of electric vehicles exponentially on campus.  The University has engaged in a myriad of practices to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions and operate in a sustainable manner, but we still have to engage in critical thinking and planning in all of our processes to achieve our ultimate goal.”

Completion of the Climate Action Plan is set for Jan. 15; for more information, e-mail Jones at dajones1@uncc.edu.

Photo: David Jones

See a related story on the Aug. 15 information session to recruit campus sustainability liaisons.