The Sidney E. Frank Hall for Life Sciences, dedicated in 2006, was the first Brown building to meet Leadership in Environmental Design silver certification criteria.

Brown reduces carbon emissions by nearly 8 percent in one year

Conservation and efficiency measures helped the University shrink its carbon footprint at a higher rate than anticipated in 2007–08, a Facilities Management report reveals.
By Richard C. Lewis  |  March 4, 2009  |  Email to a friend

Brown University reduced its carbon emissions by nearly 8 percent last fiscal year, outpacing the annual goal set by President Ruth Simmons aimed at substantially cutting the University’s carbon footprint by 2020.

Emissions of the global-warming gas carbon dioxide from current buildings on campus were compared to totals from fiscal 2007, the base year against which all yearly targets will be measured. The results are listed in the first annual Sustainability Progress Report compiled by Brown’s Facilities Management department.

In January 2008, President Simmons announced an aggressive plan for Brown to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from existing buildings to 42 percent below 2007 levels by 2020. The report says Brown cut its emissions by 7.7 percent in fiscal 2008, exceeding the University’s goal of reducing annual emissions by 4 percent.

“This is the first time we’ve seen a change in direction (in emissions),” said Chris Powell, director of the Office of Sustainable Energy and Environmental Initiatives in Facilities Management. “That’s a big psychological impact that shows we can make changes to our carbon footprint.”

Much of the reduction came when Brown switched to natural gas from fuel oil to heat campus buildings. The University signed a deal with National Grid that locks in the price of natural gas, a cleaner burning fuel, through 2012. The deal helps protect Brown from volatility in the natural-gas market.

Further reductions were realized through energy efficiency initiatives undertaken by Facilities Management. Among the most noticeable programs were replacing traditional light switches with motion-sensor lighting in several campus buildings and installing higher-efficiency burners. Brown cut its emissions further by reusing more of the heat returning from its hot water pipes and turning it into electricity at the University’s cogeneration plant. The central plant provides hot water through seven miles of pipes on campus.

Recycling for curbside pickup totaled more than 500 tons last year.: Recycling for curbside pickup totaled more than 500 tons last year. The report notes that Brown is recycling more than ever. In fiscal 2008, the University recycled 71 percent of its waste as a result of campus initiatives, a figure that was boosted by a nearly perfect (98 percent) recycling of the Smith Swim Center’s demolition. The University collected more than 500 tons of curbside recycling, 600 tons of food waste from Sharpe Refectory was recycled, and more than 70 tons of leaf and yard waste was sent to the state recycling center, according to the report.

When it comes to new buildings, the University has affirmed that all construction meet a minimum “silver” designation as outlined by the Leadership in Environmental Design. The Sidney E. Frank Hall for Life Sciences, dedicated in 2006, was the first edifice to meet LEED silver certification, said Stephen Maiorisi, vice president for facilities management. “We’re hoping to do better” with certification in future construction, he added.

Maiorisi said Facilities Management plans to issue quarterly, snapshot-like progress reports as well as the more comprehensive annual reports to make Brown’s emissions reduction efforts as transparent as possible. “I think the big take-home message is that Brown has been [improving energy efficiency] since the early nineties,” he said. “The carbon issue pushed us to bring it all together.”