Last Word - Spring 2008
Sustainability
As I’m sure is the case with almost all readers of this
essay, the news on climate change over the last five years or so has moved
me from growing awareness and appreciation of the issues to ever greater
levels of commitment to action and anxiety over the future for our children
and grandchildren. There
are, of course, many potential foci for one’s action on this issue,
ranging from weighing in on national, regional and local public policy matters
to—most important—“keeping your own side of the street
clean,” as trustee Sarah Johnson Redlich ’82 reminded us
in her remarks at our October Johnson Hall of Science dedication.
This issue
of the magazine is devoted to sharing the many ways, today and historically,
in which St. Lawrence has been paying attention to environmental matters,
for efforts devoted to keeping our own side of the street clean are longstanding. For
example, until our recent boom in new construction, and despite the huge
increase in electricity use on campus by computers and other technological
equipment, for the decade ending in 2002 the University steadily decreased
its total energy use.
Additions of space since then, such as Newell
Field House, the Student Center, the Steiner Townhouses and now Johnson Hall
of Science have, however, resulted in dramatic increases in overall energy
use despite construction of ever more energy-efficient buildings. Johnson
Hall, of course, is LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design)
Gold-certified, but its 115,000 square feet will nonetheless add significantly
to overall energy use.
In November, after a review of its requirements by
the University’s
Conservation Council, I signed the American College and University Presidents
Climate Commitment. The University is now committed to preparation
within two years of an action plan that will lead St. Lawrence to climate
neutrality “at the earliest possible moment.” “Climate
neutrality” in this instance means reaching the point where either
the University’s greenhouse gas emissions reach zero or, after a major
reduction, the balance of our emissions is offset by greenhouse gas absorption
either on campus or by direct action on our part elsewhere.
Reductions in
greenhouse gas emissions must and will come by increasing conservation efforts
involving both behavioral change and replacement of less efficient technology,
by obtaining more of our energy from renewable fuels, and—for
the very hard nut to crack at the end—finally from offsets. Let
me give some examples.
*Replacement of less efficient technology: We have replaced all of the washers
and dryers on campus with ENERGY STAR machines and have become an ENERGY
STAR Partner. Resulting reductions in electricity use are substantial,
leading to present value savings over the 10-year life of the machines of
well over $100,000.
*Renewable fuels: After deep exploration we are close to a decision to install
a needed new boiler that will produce heat by burning pellets made from locally
grown biomass of a kind that will use up far more greenhouse gasses in their
growing than will be emitted from their burning.
*Offsets: Potential examples include planting perennial grasses on existing
University lands or other local lands that will consume more greenhouse gasses
than existing plantings on those lands, or using University resources to
enable local building owners who cannot afford to do it themselves to invest
in renovations and technology replacements that will reduce greenhouse gas
emissions. In both examples the idea is to find a real and local way
to absorb greenhouse gas emissions at a level at least equal to the emissions
we cannot eliminate.
I think you can see that a campus commitment to climate neutrality is challenging,
to put it mildly, and will take time. But we are convinced that doing
so is an urgent priority, and we hope that everyone else has drawn or is
drawing the same conclusion. The future depends on it!
Daniel F. Sullivan
