Good afternoon!

 

Info sharing...

 

Sad day for local Styrofoam recycling.  🙁  Dart Corp is closing at the end of this year.  They reached out to me to request that I update our website info re: Styrofoam recycling.

 

He said the Styrofoam drop-off will remain open until Friday, Sept 29th.

 

https://www.news-gazette.com/business/longtime-urbana-plant-to-close-135-jobs-lost/article_51bd0a33-27ab-5f72-8d72-af8a3c60ce72.html

Dart Container closing Urbana plant by end of year; 135 jobs to be lost Company said it will provide offers of severance and job placement assistance to workers currently employed; Urbana police were asked by Dart to stand by at a company employee meeting www.news-gazette.com

 

Please forward this to whoever you think would be interested in knowing.

Nichole

P10H08575 placed in Waste Transfer Station break room

P10H08580 placed on the first floor- East

P10H08581 placed on the first floor- West

P10H08585 placed on basement level

Sending on behalf of iSEE Director Madhu Khanna:

 

Morgan,

 

The Institute for Sustainability, Energy, and Environment (iSEE) is exploring a dedicated building to raise the profile of iSEE on campus and provide space for the institute to grow and expand sustainability research, education and operational support. I would like you to be part of the committee we are assembling to give feedback during the building feasibility study.

 

This committee will help shape the way the physical space can facilitate building multi-disciplinary research teams, hosting classes for the sustainability minor, supporting sustainability student groups, and overall, being a hub for sustainability activity on campus.

 

The feasibility study was recently approved and a design firm has been selected. We anticipate meeting monthly through the Spring semester.

 

If you accept this invitation then you will receive a formal charge letter from VCRI Martinis. You may also delegate this to a colleague or staff member if appropriate. Please respond by December 22. Thank you for your consideration.

 

Elizabeth A. Murphy

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

Sure, no problem.

Morgan White

Hi All,

 

The iSEE advisory committee and Sustainability Subcouncil will meet on November 27. I would like to get a first draft of the slides done by Friday, November 17 so Madhu has time to review it before the Thanksgiving holiday.

 

The Advisory slides on Box: https://uofi.box.com/s/m380tqilie5s4503svndmoot1hbxnftx

 

I have put update assignments in the notes section of the slides, but will also list them here:

Heidi-slides 6,7 (if there is something exciting), 9,11 (Proposal metrics, new proposals submitted, Sust Trans update) Should we add Kyushu in here?

Luis-slides 13, 14 (Critical Conv and Sloan Workshop)

Eric-slides 15-20 (ELP and Gen Ed. Add a slide about the ESG certificate)

Jen/Miriam-slides 22-30 (Waste reduction efforts/DIA engagement and Carbon Credit accounting)

 

Subcouncil slides: https://uofi.box.com/s/241ttyx8bfceor6hzvoqp0c577lykpzx

Jen and Miriam—pull the slides about waste reduction and carbon credits over to this talk also. Make a slide on the Green research (there is a placeholder)

Eric-pull the Gen Ed slides over to this talk and replace the previous version.

 

Thanks,

Elizabeth

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

Hi Elizabeth,

 

I have compiled all the draft subcouncil slides into this version: https://uofi.app.box.com/file/1361429522139

 

Please let me know if you have any questions or changes.

 

Best,

Miriam

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

 

Hi all,

 

Please use the version:

 

Sustainability SubCouncil Nov 2023_11.17.2023_new.pptx

 

https://uofi.box.com/s/cbg4t8nr73ib38sr23i7n8k32uo82lwf

 

Thanks,

Jen

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

 

Hi All

Thanks for putting these slides together in a timely manner. I have a few comments and suggestions below

 

Miriam/Tony

A few formatting edits are needed to improve the look and readability of the slides

1. Remove the top header which says education or campus sustainability on each slide since it is redundant to have it on each slide
2. Instead make the content oriented header which is on the next line the top header and in larger font.
3. Please change font to be at least 20 or more everywhere
4. Add a section break for each change in topic – is this current section header following our latest template? If not would be good to have that.
5. Miriam - Send me the numbers underlying the graphs for carbon credits that you have created
6. Miriam – any idea on how our decision to sell or not would affect our AASHE gold star rating?

 

All- take a look at the two slides I have added at the end and see if you agree.

We have three choices for our recommendation on carbon credits –

stop sales completely

or follow the Ball state example and say that we will stop sales after we reach carbon neutrality, sell our credits in the meantime and not claim any environmental benefit from these reductions in the meantime,

or only sell to entities that are willing to retire these credits and not claim it to achieve their own carbon reduction goals.

 

Thoughts? We can keep it open for now and solicit ideas from the council.

 

If I could have these back by Wednesday then I can go over again and have a final version ready for Elizabeth to send to the Council by Saturday. 

 

Have a great Thanksgiving!

Madhu

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

 

Hi Madhu,

 

Regarding the last slide: Second Nature confirmed at the end of October that we have 10,264 remaining unsold carbon credits. These credits are vintage year 2018, and we haven’t verified any credits beyond 2018. I’m not sure if we can estimate total potential credits if we achieve carbon neutrality as I’ve been told the calculation used is quite complicated, but I’ve reached out to Second Nature to ask if there is any guidance to come up with a rough estimate. Another consideration is how we plan to reach carbon neutrality, and the feasibility of achieving carbon neutrality through emissions reductions alone. It looks like most schools plan to achieve carbon neutrality by buying some offsets.

 

Please see my responses to your other questions below in blue:

 

 

1. Miriam - Send me the numbers underlying the graphs for carbon credits that you have created

The graphs were generated on SIMAP. The attached spreadsheet includes the underlying data. I’ve also included a screen grab below that lays out the numbers clearly.

1. Miriam – any idea on how our decision to sell or not would affect our AASHE gold star rating?

Institutions can earn up to 8 possible points for Greenhouse Gas Emissions in the AASHE scoring system. UIUC received 3.15 out of 8 possible points in this category. Carbon credits sold or transferred are accounted for in our total score, so selling carbon credits could reduce the points we earn here. I looked at the report for Ball State, and found they achieved a Gold rating in 2023. Their score for Greenhouse Gas Emissions is also higher than ours at 4.5/8.0. This suggests there are ways to maintain a high score in this area while selling carbon credits.
Our most recent AASHE score is 73.25, and the range for Gold is 65-85, so I do not expect that selling carbon credits would have a strong enough impact on our score to alter our overall Gold rating.

Thanks and please let me know if you have any other questions!

 

Best,

Miriam

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

Hi Morgan,

 

The data from the carbon emissions charts in the subcouncil slides is attached here.

 

-Miriam

Hey Morgan,

 

The SSC has moved to fund this; I would like to get the go-ahead on it.

 

Improper waste segregation poses significant environmental and financial challenges. In colleges, even students often need to pay more attention to separate waste correctly, leading to damaged recyclables, increased landfill waste, and the labor-intensive task of sorting improperly discarded waste. This issue extends beyond universities, indicating a larger problem with waste management globally. The current approach of replacing traditional single-bin systems with costly three-bin recycling bins has improved diversion rates but falls short of expectations. Financial burdens arise from the need to hire workers for manual waste sorting. To address this problem, we developed a cost-effective solution that ensures minimal damage to recyclables by sorting waste at the point of disposal.

The project's use of AI, and revenue optimization contributes to more efficient waste management practices. This not only minimizes contamination and reduces landfill waste but also optimizes the recovery of recyclable materials. The data analysis dashboard provides users with valuable insights into disposal trends and waste composition. This empowers users to make informed decisions about waste management, promoting responsible practices. Additionally the lower cost of switching to SegBin.Ai than conventional 3 bin dustbins by over 50% significantly reduces spend on waste management infrastructure and it also has a major boost in waste diversion rates.


I don’t like the budgeted amount of $1,600.00 for CAD and Software, it is confusing, it appears the students are paying themselves. I would like clarification on this.
Codie

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

Hi Codie,

 

Can you point me to the full file for this?  Are they just developing a software program, or building some sort of AI robot system for sorting mail?

 

Thanks,

Morgan

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

Hey Morgan,

This is the link for the project application and Excel application, I cc’d Daphne Hulse in the email as she is the advisor and can help with clarification questions. I always appreciate your time,

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

Hi Morgan,

 

The student group here is developing both a software system and physical prototype to place on top of existing recycling bins (the ones that are not the 3-stream bins). They are piloting sorting system at the recycling bin for the software to distinguish different types of objects and tell the user which stream to place it in (trash, paper, bottles/cans, etc.). They are planning to pilot this at PPSB and Garage & Carpool, with the understanding that it needs to be feasible for BSWs.

 

Thank you,
Daphne

Hey Morgan,

 

A brief discretion of the project,
Developing a working small-scale anaerobic digester with a membrane separation technology to collect separated carbon dioxide and methane that is an economically viable system for small farms. This allows for the farms to lower their carbon emissions, and decrease the need for natural gas extraction, by utilizing natural sources of cattle manure. And can be utilized on the UIUC research cattle farms.

 

Small-scale anaerobic digestion with membrane filtration is possible for small farms. Illinois specifically does not have any prominent sources of natural gas production, thus, a lot is transported in. By showing that small-scale systems are possible, this can be utilized on the many small farms that are in Illinois to decrease reliance on importing methane, which has leakage issues in the pipeline. The system also allows for capturing carbon dioxide that would otherwise be released from composting, the byproduct creation of fertilizer, and the main point of capturing methane for usage. The project's deliverables would be the small-scale anaerobic digester and then a feasibility study on whether a membrane separation technology would be cost-effective and feasible for the system.

It appears they are building their own and operating it out of a lab.

Codie Sterner

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

FYI – this is the student application.  Are there code concerns for this project?  Thanks! Morgan

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

 

Good morning Morgan,

 

Some questions:

• Can ‘small’ be defined?  Pictures?  Dimensions?
• Will the equipment be inside or outside?  If inside, I think we would want a plan indicating the location, and what else is in the building.  Methane is a flammable gas – and CO2 is considered an asphyxiant.  An outside install is less risky than an inside install.  If outside, we would want a site plan.
• “Canisters” of Methane and CO are listed.  What type of volume is proposed?  (Again, outside versus inside is the key factor – if outside, how close will any structures be located?
• Any power requirements?
• Has Safety and Compliance been informed?  Betsy Richardson might have some comments.

 

katie sperl

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

Hi Katie,

 

That was what I was thinking too. I think it might be a Lab-scale digester like 5/10 L, but they have not specified where they will be building or operating the digester and the team did not define the “scale” of this project. Their faculty advisor, Jiajun He, is an Associate Professor in Mechanical Engineering with a background in Chemistry and a focus on Energy.

 

I was wondering if they have talked to DRS also.

 

I agree that Betsy or Colleen should be included. However, if it is a Lab-scale reactor, I don’t know if Betsy or Colleen would be needed.

 

Thank you,
Sarthak

Please see the attached link to read the F&S newsletter.

Hi Morgan and Lisa,

 

This fall I have submitted two SSC step-1 applications:

1. Shipping containers for bicycle storage - $85,000
2. Purchase and Installation of bike shelter - $250,000

 

See attached the application. Thank you,
Sarthak