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Projects Updates for key objective: No name

  1. offsets and landholdings as C sink in SIMAP

    Associated Project(s): 
    Carbon Credit Purchasing Program (C2P2) with Second Nature

    Greetings Carbon Offsets Workshop Attendees, and those looking to stay engaged with us!,

     

    Thank you so much for your participation at our workshop on Tuesday April 18th 3-4pm EST, and thank you as well to those who couldn’t attend but are looking to follow-up on the information we shared. We are grateful for the variety of perspectives represented in the meeting space, and the questions and comments we were able to address in the time we had. Moving forward, we’re looking to get your feedback on if there is a collective appetite for diving further into this topic, and what resources are still needed. 

     

    Please feel free again to email Meredith directly with your questions and to get involved directly with our Carbon Offsets Network, C2P2 Initiative, and advisory council....

     

    For those of you looking to gain support with your climate action and resilience work in the southeast...

     

    Please visit this link to share your thoughts and feedback on this workshop by Friday April 28th. Please see links to resources included in the survey.

     

    View Meredith Leigh’s presentation linked here. 

    View our recorded zoom meeting video here. 

     

    See below our Q&A of questions and comments institutions and attendees had:

     

    Q&A with Meredith Leigh:

     

    Sandra Van Travis, Morehouse College’s Environmental Health and Safety Officer asks:

    Please send information on how to calculate offsets using trees.

     

    Campuses have hired arborists to determine sample areas and measure trees. These measurements require tree height, diameter at breast height, and species identification. Arborists are positioned to do this work. 

    If hiring an arborist is not possible, new remote sensing technology providers offer phone apps that can be used by students or faculty to calculate tree data and categorize by species. One company in particular is interested in partnering with HEIs. If you are interested in connecting with this company, email Meredith. 

     

    Christina Kwauk Asks:

    I am curious if any of the members of the working group are familiar with carbon offsets that go toward non-mitigation activities but rather to climate adaptation activities that may benefit climate resilience outcomes of environmental justice communities (i.e. instead of carbon removed, what about respiratory illnesses averted/reduced?). This may be totally out of scope for carbon offsets and this workshop, but I wanted to join to listen for these connections today. 

     

    This is a great question and a badly needed type of offset! Right now these kinds of values are considered “co-benefits” of carbon offsets, and people don’t put a dollar value on them like they do on MTCDE reductions, but offset projects are more attractive to buyers when they list these kinds of co-benefits. Campus participation in the Offset Network is a great way to develop projects uniquely suited to your campus, especially when your goals are to serve co-benefits and you have less pressure to just produce quantifiable offsets. An example of this is Clarkson ISE’s recently avoided forest conversion project through the Offset Network. Their main goals were to create student involvement in forest inventory and carbon project development, and to protect a piece of land and the endangered species of turtle that lives on it. The offsets generated from the project are small, and will count toward Clarkson’s Scope 3 emissions, but the co-benefits were what really made the project worthwhile for them. 

     

    Dr. Maria Boccalandro asks:

    If you are in a community college setting where you work with tax payer’s money how do you justify buying these credits? I think narrative matters... are there any best practices for community colleges you can share?

     

    A great question, and one that Second Nature is still working on as we diversify the institutions we support. I think the key to this is transparency- communicating to stakeholders both the intentions of the offset purchase and its impact. To this end, it would be advisable to make space for community input when the school develops its offsets strategy. This way taxpayers can provide feedback on whether they see value in the college purchasing offsets as a way of becoming climate neutral, and if so, what types of projects would feel valuable to them. Furthermore I think engagement in the Offset Network, where faculty and students can create local projects with high co-benefits would be a good fit for community colleges. The projects can be designed for community involvement and high community co-benefits so that the expense of engaging is co-owned and the positive impacts are felt beyond campus. 

     

    Thank you all again, and we look forward to reviewing your feedback!,

     

    Blythe Coleman-Mumford (she/her/hers)

    -----------------------------------

    Hi Morgan, Madhu, and Elizabeth –

     

    Given that we have been discussing offsets and Second Nature’s role, I thought you might find the slides linked below (Meredith Leigh’s presentation, highlighted) of interest. They provide an overview of the topic of offsets and several examples of what various HEIs are doing in this space.

     

    Notably, slides 10-11 indicate that C sequestered in trees can be removed from total campus emissions as a “sink” in SIMAP. As you know, sinks are not the same as offsets because they do not require additionality. We know C sequestration for Trelease Woods and have the data to determine C sequestered by campus trees. So I think we should consider listing them as sinks. We could also consider other campus lands where land use/land cover might support C sequestration (cover cropping?).

     

    Based on the public SIMAP report (here), we have reported 0 sinks/non-additional sequestration in the past. When will we complete the next SIMAP report?

     

    Thanks,

    Jen

    --------------------------------------

    Thanks for sharing this Jen. This is helpful to have. I will look over the slides. Can you also send me the write up by Warren Lavey.

     

    We should plan on discussing this at our next CS team meeting unless there is urgency to discuss it sooner

     

     

    Best

    Madhu

    -------------------------------------

    Hi Madhu,

     

    It is not urgent; we can discuss at the next CS team meeting.

     

    The Resilience Team will be discussing the offset policy letter at today’s meeting. I will share once it is finalized. The law student working with Warren presented her findings about the MOU and paths forward at the April meeting. Notes can be found here:

    https://icap.sustainability.illinois.edu/project-update/resilience-icap-team-april-meeting

     

    Jen

  3. iSEE New Green Chapter and Event Certifications

    Associated Project(s): 
    Certified Greener Campus Programs
    Certified Green Event Program
    Certified Green Chapter Program

    I hope everyone had a great Earth Day this past weekend! Congratulations to the newest recipients of our Greener Campus Programs certifications.

     

    -Green Chapter: Phi Chi Theta, Gold, Certified April 2023

    -Green Event:

    iSEE Green Globes, Certified April 2023

    iSEE Kindness Rocks, Certified April 2023

     

    Keep up the great work, happy greening!

  5. Sarthak Prasad and Daphne Hulse present Sustainable Transportation and Zero Waste topics to 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students at Franklin STEAM Academy

    Associated Project(s): 
    Encourage Active Transportation
    Increase Public Transportation Use
    Encourage Bicycle Use
    Achieve Zero Waste
    Decrease Wasteful Practices through Behavior Change
    Zero Waste Outreach & Presentations

    Presentations given during the lunch sessions for each grade in the library. Franklin STEAM hosts sustainability speakers each April in honor of Earth Month.

     

     

    Thanks so much for coming!!!

    We really appreciate your time and energy today speaking to Franklin's future "world rescuers."

     

    I know you cannot attend our Open House this May 11th but do consider if you would like to table at our fall Open House on September 14th.

     

    We really appreciated your clear and important messages.

     

    Zanne Newman

    Magnet Site Coordinator

    Franklin STEAM Academy

     

    Attached Files: 

  6. Wind Turbine Charging Station

    Associated Project(s): 
    Wind Power on Campus

    This morning, I met with Ben Isabel, the Chief of Staff for State Senator Laura Fine.  Ben is moving forward looking for grant money to fund our project at UIUC.  He is talking to the Department of Transportation which we both think should be interested given the interest of President Biden with more EVs.

     

    Ben hopes to hear something positive within a week or so.

     

    Regards,

     

    George

    ---------------------------------

    Good Morning,


    I am forwarding the message I received over the weekend from George.  Cheri, as you have had discussions with George on moving forward with this, who does he consider to be his campus partner when he refers to “our project at UIUC”  Is this research park?   The original turbine on campus was accepted as a donation through isee, but we (Paul Foote and Frank Colacicco) discussed the condition of the unit, challenges and costs as excessive.   Initially, a SSC application was also submitted and not funded in our efforts.

     

    As George is working earnestly in securing funding I am concerned if he is accurately communicating a University commitment / partnership.

     

    Best,
    Tim

     

  7. Resilience iCAP Team April Meeting

    Associated Project(s): 
    Resilience iCAP Team
    Carbon Credit Purchasing Program (C2P2) with Second Nature

    Resilience iCAP Team had its online April meeting on Friday, April 14th, at 1 PM. The team had two guests: Annie Cebulski and Kejsi Ago. Annie presented the carbon offsets that the university has to purchase and gave some recommendations on how to complete these purchases. Afterward, the team discussed next steps for a potential statement and/or recommendation on this carbon offset purchasing. Meeting minutes are attached. 

    Attached Files: 

  10. UIUC Micro Nano

    Associated Project(s): 
    Allocate Existing Resources

    Mario,

     

    EMS Controls (David Hardin’s group) is working on a controls upgrade at Micro Nano. I am trying to connect Ayush (cc’d) with someone who can discuss the engineering on the ESCO project and potential ECM’s that were evaluated but ultimately not included in the project. Are you a good contact for this or should I reach out to GBA (Mike/Tim)?

     

    Thanks,

     

    Amber Perfetti

    -------------------------

    Amber,

     

    I think Mike would be best.  I don’t have access to any of the work we did with ESG.  Maybe Jim C can help as well ?

     

    Mario Zotta P.E.

    ---------------------

    Hey Amber,

     

    Thanks for getting this conversation started. Can you share Mike and Jim’s email ID’s? I can try contacting them.

     

    Thank you,

    Ayush

    -----------------------

    Dear Jim and Mike,

     

    EMS Controls (David Hardin’s group) is working on a controls upgrade project at Micro Nano. Is there someone with whom we can discuss the potential ECM’s that were evaluated but ultimately not included in the ESCO project?

     

    Thank you,

    Ayush Gupta

    -----------------------

    Ayush: 

     

    Jim and I will circle our wagons next week and get together with you by the  weeks end.

    Michael J. McDermott

    ----------------------

    Thank you, sir. That would be great.

     

    Regards,

    Ayush

    ---------------------

    Ayush:

     

    I was able to reach out to Deon Collins and review the 2014 ESG Unfunded list, 2011 VFA Deferred maintenance back log and 2012 Cannon MEP Condition Assessment.    We were able to start a preliminary list of energy conservation measures/deferred maintenance items for consideration:

     

    1. Add DDC control for three (3) existing humidifiers - $30,000
    2. DDC upgrade for AHU-18, 19 and 20 - $225,000
    3. Replace AHU-15 (16,000 cfm ) & 16 (21,600 cfm) (Alternate 3) - $700,000
    4. Replace AHU-13 (16,000 cfm) and AHU-14 and add Heat Recovery (Alternate 4) – $2.9 million
    5. Main building steam valve replacement (ECM-8)- $200,000
    6. Pipe Insulation (ECM-10)- 125,000
    7. Active Media Filtration (ECM-15)- $800,000
    8. Main Building Chilled Water Valve Replacement - $60,000
    9. New Building DDC upgrade
    10. New Building southwest section Lab Upgrade and VAV conversion
    11. E-17A & B (25,600 cfm each) – Replace exhaust fan and move to roof - $1,200,000
    12. E-18A&B (10,600 cfm each) – Replace exhaust fan and move to roof - $600,000
    13. High Efficiency Fume hood and VAV conversion upgrade
    14. Heat recovery Chiller
    15. Acid, Solvent and Special Gas Scrubber Replacement – $700,000
    16. Replace chilled water system - $221,000
    17. Replace steam and Condensate - $108,700
    18. Replace AHU-9(22,000 cfm) , AHU-10 (22,000 cfm), AHU-11 (5,200 CFM) , AHU-12(8,000 cfm) , and AHU-17(34,000 cfm) - $1,600,000
    19. Replace ventilation systems for AHU-11 and AHU-17 - $720,000
    20. Replace AHU-1,2 3,4 &5 - $1,500,000
    21. Replace general exhaust EF-5 - $20,000
    22. Domestic hot water heater-$200,000
    23. Acid waste system – $325,000
    24. Process water system - $300,000
    25. Vacuum system - $220,000
    26. Emergency power system- $300,000
    27. Exit lighting – $25,000
    28. Lighting control systems - $250,000
    29. Exterior Lighting- $20,000

     

     

    Call if you have any questions.  

    ----------------------------------

    Hey David,

     

    Below is the list of unfunded ECMs and deferred maintenance items that were considered but not acted upon by ESCO.

     

    Thank you,

    Ayush

    ------------------------------------------

    Ayush,

     

    This is useful information and provides a starting point.

     

    Thanks

     

    Hey everyone,

     

    Here is some info from Mike McDermott from their ESCO review.

     

    Thanks

  14. Weekly capstone meetings: Meeting from 3/29 and 4/5

    Associated Project(s): 
    2024 Campus Bike Plan
    Independent Student Projects

    Meeting from 4/5/2023

    Summary: Ethan and Sarthak met via zoom where they discussed the work on the plan that Ethan has done so far. They also discussed the thorough plan for the next year to describe to the stakeholders, in regard to their involvement with the 2024 plan. Ethan is expected to respond to stakeholders by next week, add onto the plan (mainly the executive summary, goals & objectives, introduction, and planning process sections). Ethan will send Sarthak separate emails about his Urban Planning presentation on their work for school, and request for GIS information.

    Meeting from 3/29/2023

    Summary: Ethan and Sarthak met briefly via zoom (Ethan was out of town dealing with a family emergency so there was not much to discuss). Ethan is expected to make a Google Sheet with stakeholders' information and responses, a sheet of timeline for the planning process, and a document for the 2024 plan.

    Attached Files: 

  18. Sustainability in RA training

    Associated Project(s): 
    Educate Future Leaders
    Broaden Sustainability Education

    Hi Tony,

     

    I met with folks from Housing yesterday about incorporating sustainability into RA training. Eric and Daphne were also on the call. We identified a few approaches for sharing content. I now need your help developing the materials.

     

    One approach is to provide a short (3 min max) video for RAs to view, followed by questions to assess learning. As a framework, I suggest we use the sustainability guide that the interns developed with Meredith (attached). Do you have any video content that would be appropriate? The student training video is too long, but hits all the highlights. Is this something you could shorten? We need to send the video by mid/late June.

     

    A second approach is to provide content for a microlearning session that would pair with the facilities session. They prefer a mixed mode approach, i.e., not just lecture/slides. We need to provide the content within the next two weeks. Is this doable? I shared the sustainability guide with them and am awaiting feedback.

     

    A third approach is to distribute materials during the RA resource fair, which is held August 10th.

     

    Finally, Housing is open to sharing information via their “Housing Insider” newsletter and digital platforms. It would be great to have your help developing content for those.  

     

    Let me know what you think and we can also touch base at the management meeting today.

     

    Thanks,

    Jen

    Attached Files: 

  19. iSEE Green Chapter and Event Certifications

    Associated Project(s): 
    Certified Green Event Program
    Certified Green Chapter Program
    Certified Greener Campus Programs

    Happy Earth Month! Congratulations to our newest recipients of the Greener Campus Program.

     

    Green Chapter: Delta Gamma, Silver, Recertified April 2023

    Green Event:

    -Chancellor's Office for Special Events Gov Pritzker Press Conference, Certified April 2023

    -ECEC23, Certified April 2023

     

    Keep up the great work, and check out our exciting events for Earth Week this year!

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