How to Assess the Carbon Footprint of a Large University? The Case Study of University of Bologna’s Multicampus Organization
University campuses represent a heterogeneous ecosystem as to social, economic, energetic, and personal travel planning with a huge impact on hosting cities and territories. Sustainable policies are thus fundamental to reduce this impact and to adopt ecological behaviors. The measures for any Univer...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2022-12-01
|
| Series: | Energies |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/16/1/166 |
| _version_ | 1827760814057062400 |
|---|---|
| author | Roberto Battistini Fabrizio Passarini Rita Marrollo Claudio Lantieri Andrea Simone Valeria Vignali |
| author_facet | Roberto Battistini Fabrizio Passarini Rita Marrollo Claudio Lantieri Andrea Simone Valeria Vignali |
| author_sort | Roberto Battistini |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | University campuses represent a heterogeneous ecosystem as to social, economic, energetic, and personal travel planning with a huge impact on hosting cities and territories. Sustainable policies are thus fundamental to reduce this impact and to adopt ecological behaviors. The measures for any University Sustainability Plan should be evaluated in terms of GHG emissions, as well as the overall impact of the university itself. Carbon footprint (CF) calculation is a relevant Decision Support tool that allows university organizations to measure and communicate the environmental effects of their activities. The aim of this paper is to present a carbon footprint methodology specifically designed to calculate the carbon footprint of large universities. The methodology was applied to calculate the CF of the University of Bologna by following international standards—i.e., the GHG protocol, the ISO 14064, and the ISO/TR 14069 guide—to understand the environmental impact caused by greenhouse gas emissions from direct and indirect university activities. The study was conducted upon the data available in 2020 and then was compared to the 2018 data, with the aim to recognize if the effect of the pandemic could have altered the results. In 2020, the University of Bologna emitted 16,467 tCO<sub>2</sub>e which became 15,753 tCO<sub>2</sub>e considering the offset and avoided emission provided by the internal production of energy from renewable sources. Comparison between 2020 and 2018 shows how, in 2018, most of the emissions came from transportation, representing 74% of the total emissions, while in 2020 almost 50% of total emissions derived by IT procurements. The case application demonstrates the way with which the methodology may be applied to assess environmental impact for complex university campuses. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T10:03:08Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-9ef58ebde95c4f50a03750da16762d50 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1996-1073 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T10:03:08Z |
| publishDate | 2022-12-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Energies |
| spelling | doaj.art-9ef58ebde95c4f50a03750da16762d502023-11-16T15:15:25ZengMDPI AGEnergies1996-10732022-12-0116116610.3390/en16010166How to Assess the Carbon Footprint of a Large University? The Case Study of University of Bologna’s Multicampus OrganizationRoberto Battistini0Fabrizio Passarini1Rita Marrollo2Claudio Lantieri3Andrea Simone4Valeria Vignali5DICAM Department, University of Bologna, 40136 Bologna, ItalyDepartment of Industrial Chemistry “Toso Montanari”, University of Bologna, 40136 Bologna, ItalyUniversity of Bologna, 40136 Bologna, ItalyDICAM Department, University of Bologna, 40136 Bologna, ItalyDICAM Department, University of Bologna, 40136 Bologna, ItalyDICAM Department, University of Bologna, 40136 Bologna, ItalyUniversity campuses represent a heterogeneous ecosystem as to social, economic, energetic, and personal travel planning with a huge impact on hosting cities and territories. Sustainable policies are thus fundamental to reduce this impact and to adopt ecological behaviors. The measures for any University Sustainability Plan should be evaluated in terms of GHG emissions, as well as the overall impact of the university itself. Carbon footprint (CF) calculation is a relevant Decision Support tool that allows university organizations to measure and communicate the environmental effects of their activities. The aim of this paper is to present a carbon footprint methodology specifically designed to calculate the carbon footprint of large universities. The methodology was applied to calculate the CF of the University of Bologna by following international standards—i.e., the GHG protocol, the ISO 14064, and the ISO/TR 14069 guide—to understand the environmental impact caused by greenhouse gas emissions from direct and indirect university activities. The study was conducted upon the data available in 2020 and then was compared to the 2018 data, with the aim to recognize if the effect of the pandemic could have altered the results. In 2020, the University of Bologna emitted 16,467 tCO<sub>2</sub>e which became 15,753 tCO<sub>2</sub>e considering the offset and avoided emission provided by the internal production of energy from renewable sources. Comparison between 2020 and 2018 shows how, in 2018, most of the emissions came from transportation, representing 74% of the total emissions, while in 2020 almost 50% of total emissions derived by IT procurements. The case application demonstrates the way with which the methodology may be applied to assess environmental impact for complex university campuses.https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/16/1/166carbon footprintGHGsustainabilityuniversityenvironmental impactclimate change |
| spellingShingle | Roberto Battistini Fabrizio Passarini Rita Marrollo Claudio Lantieri Andrea Simone Valeria Vignali How to Assess the Carbon Footprint of a Large University? The Case Study of University of Bologna’s Multicampus Organization Energies carbon footprint GHG sustainability university environmental impact climate change |
| title | How to Assess the Carbon Footprint of a Large University? The Case Study of University of Bologna’s Multicampus Organization |
| title_full | How to Assess the Carbon Footprint of a Large University? The Case Study of University of Bologna’s Multicampus Organization |
| title_fullStr | How to Assess the Carbon Footprint of a Large University? The Case Study of University of Bologna’s Multicampus Organization |
| title_full_unstemmed | How to Assess the Carbon Footprint of a Large University? The Case Study of University of Bologna’s Multicampus Organization |
| title_short | How to Assess the Carbon Footprint of a Large University? The Case Study of University of Bologna’s Multicampus Organization |
| title_sort | how to assess the carbon footprint of a large university the case study of university of bologna s multicampus organization |
| topic | carbon footprint GHG sustainability university environmental impact climate change |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/16/1/166 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT robertobattistini howtoassessthecarbonfootprintofalargeuniversitythecasestudyofuniversityofbolognasmulticampusorganization AT fabriziopassarini howtoassessthecarbonfootprintofalargeuniversitythecasestudyofuniversityofbolognasmulticampusorganization AT ritamarrollo howtoassessthecarbonfootprintofalargeuniversitythecasestudyofuniversityofbolognasmulticampusorganization AT claudiolantieri howtoassessthecarbonfootprintofalargeuniversitythecasestudyofuniversityofbolognasmulticampusorganization AT andreasimone howtoassessthecarbonfootprintofalargeuniversitythecasestudyofuniversityofbolognasmulticampusorganization AT valeriavignali howtoassessthecarbonfootprintofalargeuniversitythecasestudyofuniversityofbolognasmulticampusorganization |