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Purchased electricity and stationary emissions account have accounted for most of Vassar’s carbon footprint since our baseline year of 2005[1]. While the Near-Term Decarbonization Plan will decrease the carbon impact from Vassar’s purchased electricity and stationary emissions to just 13% of 2005’s baseline[2], reducing stationary emissions is integral to reaching carbon neutrality by 2030.
A vital facet of the Near-Term Decarbonization Plan is migrating from natural gas to renewable fuel oil (RFO) for central heating. While RFO has substantially lower life-cycle emissions than natural gas[3], it is not a zero-emission fuel. Thus, it is not appropriate as a long-term solution for Vassar’s sustainability ambitions. This chapter focuses on reducing total campus combustion rather than direct carbon emissions. Reducing combustion will reduce Vassar’s carbon footprint as well, but in a manner that more clearly empowers a longer-term vision of an electrified campus.
EN-A: Campus Combustion Reduction
EN-A: Campus Combustion Reduction
Reduce total campus combustion to no more than 125,000 MMBtu per year by the end of FY25
5-Year Goal:
Reduce total campus combustion to no more than 125,000 MMBtu per year by the end of FY25
UN SDGs Supported:
3 – Good Health and Well-Being
4 – Quality Education
7 – Affordable and Clean Energy
8 – Decent Work and Economic Growth
9 – Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure
13 – Climate Action
Background:
Vassar currently uses approximately 200,000 MMBtu of combustion-based fuel for heating annually. Upon completion, the Near-Term Decarbonization Plan will reduce total annual combustion to about 145,000 MMBtu. Potential next-step projects from the Energy Master Plan can provide an additional 15,000 – 30,000 MMBtu of reduction, making this Goal aggressive but achievable.
Analysis:
As part of the Near-Term Decarbonization Plan, Vassar migrates from natural gas to renewable fuel oil (RFO) for most heating needs. While the life-cycle emissions of RFO are substantially lower than natural gas, it is not a carbon-neutral fuel.
To reach carbon neutrality, Vassar will need to substantially decrease its total on-campus combustion through a combination of electrification (changing how heat is supplied to buildings) and energy efficiency measures (reducing the total demand for heat in buildings).
[1] In 2005, stationary emissions and purchased electricity accounted for roughly 85% of Vassar’s total carbon footprint (26,125 mTons of greenhouse gas emissions, out of a total of 30,550 mTons). In 2018, they still accounted for ~79% of emissions (13,580 mTons from a total of 17,050 mTons).
[2] 3,380 mTons, compared to 26,125 in 2005
[3] 51.5 kg co2e per MMBtu for natural gas compared to 11.7 kg co2e for RFO
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