Quantitative analysis of factors affecting greenhouse gas emissions at institutions of higher education

Increasingly, institutions are reporting greenhouse gas emissions as a means to measure sustainability. One way higher education is taking a leadership role is through the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment (ACUPCC), which requires signatory institutions to account for their emissions and develop a climate action plan with emissions reduction goals. Recent data for 135 colleges and universities reporting greenhouse gas emissions was characterized and analyzed. Greenhouse gas emissions from these institutions were found to be a function of the size of the institution (as measured by full-time student enrollment and building area), the amount of laboratory and residential space, whether there is a medical school, and the extent of commuting to campus by faculty, staff and students. Scope 1 and 2 emissions are primarily influenced by the physical size of the institution and secondarily by climate. When looking at gross (total scope 1, 2 and 3) emissions, laboratory space was found to have 10 times more effect on emissions per square meter than space such as classroom and office, while residential space had a two-fold effect. These results change somewhat when looking at smaller schools that have gross emissions of 50,000 metric tons of CO2-equivalent or less. These results have implications for institutions of higher education at the policy level in that those institutions that are more laboratory intense and face greater challenges in reducing their GHG footprint. Residential colleges and universities also experience a disproportionate impact on their emissions, probably as a result of the 24 h, 7-day a week demands of such campuses.