Temple University
PA-2: Sustainability Planning

The university's Climate Action Plan outlines goals and strategies for integrating sustainability into the academic curriculum. The plan is based on the Academic Initiative Committee report to the Provost in 2009. The plan outlines strategies for both undergraduate and graduate programs.

The plan sets forth strategies for advancing sustainability education on campus. For undergraduate education, the strategy is to create an interdisciplinary certificate program. For graduate studies, the Climate Action Plan identified the objectives of creating an MS in environmental science, an MS in sustainable business, and an interdisciplinary graduate program in sustainability.

In 2014, Temple University appointed a Director of Sustainability Education in the Provost's office. The Director of Sustainability Education is responsible for developing degree programs and integrating sustainability into the academic curriculum. Prior to this year, the Office of Sustainability was responsible for advancing sustainability curriculum, and had worked to develop the interdisciplinary sustainability certificate for undergraduates.

The university's Climate Action Plan outlines goals and strategies for advancing sustainability related research. Temple is uniquely well situated as a large, public, urban comprehensive university to provide an evidence based, translational research initiative in Urban Ecology that advances basic and applied knowledge in the dynamics and interactions of plant, animal, human, land, and climate systems of urban settings and the impacts of urban settings on environmental systems. The plan recommended that Temple’s Urban Ecology research activities aim to: (a) better understand the human impacts on urban ecological systems towards the goal of designing healthier and better managed communities as well as protecting and conserving ecological systems; (b) examine the effects of natural resource use in urban settings as a means of improving knowledge of urban resource management; (c) analyze the dynamics of urban climate systems and natural hazards as a basis for improved knowledge about climate and hazards mitigation in urban regions; (d) contribute to knowledge and practice at the
intersection of environmental and water quality, biodiversity, the food chain and public health concerns; (e) providing best practices solutions for aging urban infrastructure; and (f) contribute to short, middle and long-term solutions through innovations in technology, policy, and management for urban environmental systems.

Strategies for advancing sustainability research include the creation of an
interdisciplinary Center for Urban Ecology. This proposed Center will connect
faculty research activities in an integrative manner through interdisciplinary efforts drawing from departments and colleges to create a university-wide sustainability research enterprise. The proposed Center will involve faculty and graduate fellows to conduct sustainability research related to the urban ecology theme, sponsor visiting scientists, host seminar and workshop events, and build interdisciplinary research teams related to the emphasis areas outlined above. In addition to the proposed center, the university is also supporting student research efforts through the CARAS research program and has started a graduate resource award program.

The following offices are responsible for fostering sustainable research and meeting the plan's objectives: Director of Sustainability Education, the Office of Sustainability and the Provost's Office.

The Temple Climate Action Plan sets forth a campus engagement outreach plan. The plan recommends complementing formal educational experiences through providing a strong array of co-curricular activities that extend beyond the realm of course and curricular activities. The plan recommends co-curricular activities that pertain to all levels of educational attainment, including undergraduate, graduate and professional programs. The campus outreach planning efforts build on existing programs or assets on campus.

The strategies set forth in the Climate Action Plan include:

· New student and family orientation sessions in sustainability
· Participation in national events to raise awareness on sustainability such as: Campus
Sustainability Day, RecycleMania, the National Teach-In on Global Warming, National
Park(in) Day and Earth Day
· The creation of Residence Hall Sustainability Representatives
· Holding speaker series on environmental topics in Civil and Environmental Engineering and in the School of Environmental Design
· Student organizations with sustainability initiatives, including: Students for Environmental Action, Students for Responsible Business, Temple Community Gardens, Environmental Law Society
· Student led projects, including the light switch decal program
· Create a Living and Learning Community in Sustainability within a residence hall; (b) to foster sustainability competitions among residence halls related to the reduction
of energy use, increase in recycling, and integration of slow and local food practices; (c) to create student groups in professional schools that raise awareness about sustainability;
· creation of student internship opportunities in sustainability;
· broaden the base of guest speaker and lecture series related to sustainability; and,
· transform Temple’s Main Campus into a Living Laboratory that encourages
students to develop and implement sustainability projects, installations, and technological innovations that improve the overall university compliance with the Climate Action Plan tenets

The Office of Sustainability is responsible for campus engagement planning.

The Climate Action Plan outlines the campus engagement/outreach goals and objectives for the university. The main objective of outreach in sustainability at Temple is to extend the university’s research and educational missions through public education, dissemination, and awareness for life-long learners, within different types of institutions, and across geographic settings. The plan's approach is to foster collaboration with the surrounding community to achieve mutually agreed upon goals in alignment
with Philadelphia’s Green initiatives.

The Plan outlines the following outreach strategies for the university in advancing sustainability education:

· Foster greening initiatives at local sites where immediate impacts for improving environmental quality and sustainability goals are achievable, building on the presence of strong community organizations
· Develop an advisory board that provides public information and advice related to sustainable community development, local environmental quality issues, and public actions for sustainable living
· Create an interactive web site on sustainable initiatives that individuals and groups can undertake, engage, and promote
· Implement a public speakers bureau including both Temple and Community participants available to provide lectures, talks, workshops, and other events in local schools, neighborhood associations, and community organization settings
· Develop partnerships and programs for pre-school through 12th grade students in both formal and informal educational setting

The Office of Sustainability is responsible for campus public engagement planning and implementation.

Temple University has developed a Climate Action Plan. The Climate Action Plan has been submitted to the American College and University President's Climate Commitment on May 24, 2010 and outlines Temple's plan for achieving climate neutrality, including:

Establishing a target date for achieving climate neutrality;
Setting interim targets for goals and actions that will lead to climate neutrality;
Integrating sustainability into the educational curriculum;
Expanding research and community engagement;
Establishing mechanisms for tracking progress on goals and actions.

As an interim goal to carbon neutrality, Temple has set a target of reducing campus-wide greenhouse gas emissions to 30% below baseline (fiscal year 2006) levels by 2030. This corresponds to an emissions target of 158,353 metric tons carbon dioxide equivalent by 2030, which is approximately 68,000 metric tons carbon dioxide equivalent below FY 2006 levels, and 130,000 metric tons carbon dioxide equivalent below business-as-usual emissions (45% reduction below business-as-usual).

Prior to the 2030 goal, Temple will target the following:
· 5% below baseline (fiscal year 2006) levels by 2015 (Corresponds to an emissions target of 214,907 metric tons carbon dioxide equivalent by 2015)
· 15% below baseline (fiscal year 2006) levels by 2020 (Corresponds to an emissions target of 192,285 metric tons carbon dioxide equivalent by 2020)
· 22% below baseline (fiscal year 2006) levels by 2025 (Corresponds to an emissions target of 176,450 metric tons carbon dioxide equivalent by 2025)

Temple intends to achieve zero net greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

The Office of Sustainability is responsible for the Climate Action Plan.

The university has a number of formal plans to address the sustainability of its buildings, including the Climate Action Plan, and the Utility and Energy Master Plan. The Climate Action Plan sets forth demand side and supply side efforts to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions associated with the built environment. The Utility and Energy Master Plan covers the utility infrastructure of the university, but also has a dedicated section on developing energy conservation measures for university facilities.

The Climate Action Plan sets out specific measurable objectives associated with each recommended strategy for the built environment.

Project Type Demand Side Management
Project Title Phase I Building Automation Systems
Project Description:Building automation systems will be implemented in the following facilities beginning 2010 and to be completed as soon as possible (see Appendix A):
Biology & Life Sciences Building; Barrack Hall; Bell Building; PNAH; Dental
School (Old and New); Wachman Building; Old Medical Building; Beury Hall;
New Tyler; 1300 C. B. Moore; HSC CCWP West; Anderson Hall; Medical
Research Building; Ritter Hall and Annex; Weiss Hall; Gladfelter; Pearson /
McGonigle; Faculty Student Union; Klein; Paley Library; New Medical School;
Temple Towers; Mitten Hall; Student Activities Center; Kresge Hall; Podiatric
Building (Main and Dorm); CEA; Conwell Hall; Johnson; Speakman;
Annenberg / Tomlinson; SAC 2; Standby Generator; Ambler Learning Center;
Comprehensive Cancer Center; 1940 Residence Hall; Student Pavilion; White
Hall
Project Metrics:
Simple Payback (years) 6
Annual Energy Cost Savings $1,550,700
Annual GHG reduction (MTCO2E) 8,165
Annual Energy Savings: 7,753,500 kWh, 77,500 MMBTU

Project Type Demand Side Management
Project Title Phase II Plant Development Fund Projects
Project Description: Planned building improvements will be implemented in the following facilities in the near term (see Appendix B): Health Sciences Campus-Central Steam
Plant; Ambler Campus; Pharmacy Building; Anderson Building; Medical
Research Building; Gladfelter Building; Faculty Student Union; Kresge Hall;
Podiatric Building; School of Engineering & Architecture; Conwell Hall; Ritter
Hall; Medical Office Building; Main OFM; Dixon Building; Widener Hall; Bright
Hall; Ambler Administration
Project Metrics:
Simple Payback (years) 10-14
Annual Energy Cost Savings $2,447,000 - $3,695,800
Annual GHG reduction (MTCO2E) 11,760 – 17,900
Annual Energy Savings: 15,406,700 – 24,262,800 kWh, 70,600 – 99,710 MMBTU

Project Type Demand Side Management
Project Title Phase III Energy Conservation Measures for High Energy Using Buildings
Project Description: Energy conservation measures will be implemented in the following facilities by 2020 (see Appendix C): Biology and Life Sciences Building; Beury Hall; Mitten Hall and Annex; Ritter Annex; Wachman Hall; Weiss Hall; Dental School (old
and new); Faculty Student Union; Kresge Hall; Medical Research Building; Pharmacy Building.
Project Metrics:
Simple Payback (years) 6 – 10
Annual Energy Cost Savings $3,746,800 - $6,634,500
Annual GHG reduction (MTCO2E) 19,580 – 34,670
Annual Energy Savings: 30,582,763 – 54,880,280 kWh, 68,850 – 114,650 MMBTU

Project Type Demand Side Management
Project Title Design standards for new construction
Project Description: Target new building design to limit energy usage to 30% below the industry standard baseline (ASHRAE 90.1).
Project Metrics:
Simple Payback (years) -
Annual Energy Cost Savings $2,120,000
Annual GHG reduction (MTCO2E) 11,130
Annual Energy Savings: 15,840,000 kWh; 53,340 MMBTU

Project Type Supply-Side Management
Project Title Combined Heat and Power (CHP)
Project Description: Design, development, and installation of a back pressure steam turbine & generator or a gas turbine with heat recovery system at one of the Main
Campus Central Steam Plant boilers. Assumes natural gas heat input of
100,000 MMBTU.
Project Metrics:
Simple Payback (years) 3
Annual Energy Cost Savings $350,000
Annual GHG reduction (MTCO2E) 1,833
Annual Energy Savings: 35,000 MMBTU

The Utility and Energy Master Plan set forth individual energy conservation measures that have ROI assessments. The implementation period for the projects in the Utility and Energy Master Plan are within 2 years.

Energy Office, Office of Facilities Management and the Office of Sustainability.

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In FY 14, the university completed the Utility Master Plan, which dedicated a chapter to Energy Conservation Strategies aimed at meeting a 25% energy reduction goal.

The Energy Conservation Measures identified in the Utility Master Plan included (1) the reduction of outside air during non-occupancy, (2) adding carbon dioxide sensors, (3) continuous automated commissioning, (4) pipe insulation, (5) air side energy recovery, (6) interior lighting upgrades, (7) HVAC upgrades, and (8) metering. These projects will be tracked by the building, project type when completed, simple payback and energy savings.

University's Energy Office

In FY14, Temple completed its new Landscape Master Plan, which sets forth the university's guidelines for green spaces, street furniture, stormwater management infrastructure, on-campus circulation and bike amenities.

The Landscape Master Plan promotes sustainability through the following recommendations: 1) doubling bicycle parking on campus; 2) adding bike paths on campus; 3) establishing LED fixtures as the exterior lighting standard; 4) identifying clearly recognizable outside recycling standards; 5) incorporating stormwater management features into the green spaces; 6) setting pervious pavers as the paving standard on campus; 7) increasing the number of green spaces on campus. The plan divides the landscape projects into three phases: 0-5 years; 6-10 years and 10 years and beyond.

Project Delivery Team, Office of Sustainability and Grounds Department

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The Climate Action Plan identifies goals and objectives for promoting sustainable transportation. Temple’s transportation-related emissions represent 21% or approximately 45,000 tons of the university’s FY 2008 greenhouse gas emissions. Commuting is a significant emissions source: approximately one million miles are driven by single-occupant Temple commuters on a weekly basis, including Philadelphia and Ambler campuses. According to a university survey conducted in December 2007, an estimated 40% of all students, faculty and staff commuters drive alone. On the other hand, 41% of Temple’s commuters do not use a car at any point in their commute, instead taking public transit, bicycling or walking.

The recommendations developed by the Transportation Committee were based on an understanding of the three principal ways in which GHG emissions can be reduced in the transportation sector:

1) Reduce motorized travel associated with the university’s mission, including student, staff and faculty commuting, operations of the university’s vehicle fleet, and travel to off-campus sites for university business and academic meetings and conferences.
2) Increase the efficiency of motorized travel by reducing single-occupancy vehicle travel, increasing shared travel and non-motorized travel, and encouraging the purchase of higher fuel-efficiency vehicles.
3) Reduce the carbon intensity of fuels for motorized travel by encouraging the purchase by commuters and university vehicle fleet managers of vehicles that operate on compressed natural gas, biodiesel, electric batteries and other lower-carbon content sources of energy.

Project Title Priority Parking and Lower Parking Rates
Project Description: Priority parking and lower rates would be given to low-GHG
emission vehicles (those with combined city-highway fuel economy ratings of 35 miles per gallon or higher) and motorcycles. Discounts would be based upon revenue-neutral
pricing, which raises parking fees for non-fuel-efficient vehicles a small amount in order to fund deep discounts for the comparatively smaller number of high-fuel-efficiency vehicles used by Temple commuters. To implement such a program would require an awareness campaign to inform commuters of Climate Action Plan, the incentives, redrawing of the parking garage layout to create more priority parking spots, and additional signage. Similar discounts could be applied to vehicles used for carpooling.
Timeline Short-term goal (i.e., by June 30, 2011) Funding No funding required
Coordination Internal university coordination Estimated GHG Reduction 4,661 MTCO2E (10.3% of FY2008 transportation emissions) Assuming a 50% conversion of commuter vehicles to a fuel economy of 35 miles per gallon. commuter vehicles to a fuel
economy of 35 miles per gallon.

Project Title University Transit Pass Program
Project Description: This program would be negotiated with the metropolitan public
transit authority, SEPTA, to provide reduced fee transit passes for all registered students. The program could be funded through student fees, university administration contributions or a combination.
Funding Little or no university funding required
Coordination Coordination with public transit agency
Estimated GHG Reduction 2,336 MTCO2E (5.2% of FY2008 transportation emissions)

Project Title Offsets of Air Travel
Project Description: This recommendation is a combination of university-related air
travel recommendations including (1) providing information about the carbon footprint of air travel to travelers, (2) establishing a University Carbon Fund based on voluntary purchase of carbon offsets, (3) establishing a carbon travel credits policy to enforce
limits on university departments or offices, (4) establishing minimum miles or travel time limits, and (5) increasing Temple University teleconference capabilities at the university.
Funding No funding or one-time funding (Carbon Fund and expansion of
teleconferencing)
Coordination Internal university coordination
Estimated GHG Reduction 7,950 MTCO2E (17.6% of FY2008 transportation emissions)

Office of Sustainability, Bursar's Office and Parking Services.

In May 2010, Temple University adopted its Climate Action Plan, which delineated the university’s interim goals for reducing its carbon footprint and infusing sustainability into the campus culture. The Climate Action Plan addressed the role of waste minimization and recycling as part of its comprehensive efforts to reduce the university’s carbon footprint. Since the adoption of the plan, Temple has achieved a 10% reduction in its greenhouse gas emissions derived from solid waste. While this is a noteworthy success, the university’s recycling rate continues to remain at 30%, with only 20.3% of core materials being recycled. Core materials include mixed paper, cardboard and aluminum, glass and plastic beverage containers.

This report was prepared in response to the Climate Action Plan, which recommended the creation of a Waste Minimization and Recycling Committee that is tasked with identifying strategies for achieving tangible reductions in waste and increasing Temple’s recycling rate to 40% by 2015. This report lays out the committee’s findings and recommendations.

This report reviews the goals established in the Climate Action Plan, provides an overview of Temple’s existing waste minimization and recycling practices, and examines the successes and challenges of the current program. The report then sets forth a series of recommendations aimed at increasing the university’s recycling rate while minimizing its waste stream.

This report identifies ten action areas to be considered when developing a comprehensive recycling and waste minimization program. The areas include:

1. Education, Training and Outreach. Temple University has an extensive recycling program and an array of waste minimization initiatives. However, many students, staff and faculty are still unclear on the materials that can be recycled on campus or what they can do to reduce waste. This section outlines educational programming, training and outreach aimed at increasing recycling rates among the Temple community and minimizing the waste generated.

2. Labeling and Containers. This section reviews the types of containers utilized on campus, their multi-material sorting methods and the consistency in the labeling of recycling receptacles on campus.
3. Outdoor Recycling Facilities. The outdoor recycling program has a strong infrastructure on campus. This section explores opportunities to further strengthen the program, including reviewing the consistency and distribution of the outdoor recycling containers on campus.
4. Expansion of Plastic Recycling. This section looks at the breadth of the university’s plastic recycling policy and ways to build on synergies with and successes of the City of Philadelphia’s recycling program.
5. Institutionalized Reuse and Recycling of Surplus Inventory. Temple University generates a large amount of surplus inventory due to its size and its need to be on the cutting edge as a research facility. This section investigates new opportunities for recycling and waste diversion of surplus inventory, such as clinical and laboratory materials, major appliances, furniture, research equipment, and electronics.
6. Waste Minimization and Recycling at Special Events. University departments host a variety of special events throughout the year. This section looks at ways to increase recycling and minimize waste associated with these events.
7. Purchasing. This section explores opportunities for the university to minimize its waste and increase its recycling rate through its purchasing policies, procedures and practices.
8. Housing and Residential Life. Temple’s residential community is comprised of approximately 5,200 students and is expected to grow in the future. This section suggests ways to increase the recycling rate in the residence halls and promote waste minimization. Areas addressed include outreach and education, containers and facilities, moving and composting.
9. Food Waste and Dining Facilities. Each year, Temple diverts 165.60 tons of food waste from entering the waste stream. This section highlights opportunities to increase the amount of food waste diverted and to minimize the amount of dining related waste generated through infrastructure changes, recovery programs and education and outreach.
10. Harnessing Technological Advancements. Technological improvements and increased availability present new methods for students, staff and faculty to reduce the amount of waste they produce. This section looks at the promotion of existing technologies as a tool for reducing waste levels.

The report sets forth recommendations for each of the above identified action areas. The recommendations can be implemented in four phases: immediately (completion by the end of calendar year 2011), short-term (completion by June 2012), mid-term (completion by June 2015), and long-term (completion by June 2020). The implementation of the recommendations will require university departments to forge new partnerships and institute institutional procedural change. Additionally, while the goal of the report is to develop programs and practices that are revenue neutral, there will be some upfront costs to implement the recommendations.

The Climate Action Plan established a goal of reducing the amount of greenhouse gas emissions derived from land-filled solid waste by 10% by 2015 relative to the 2006 baseline level. The Climate Action Plan estimates that Temple emitted 5,229 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (MTCO2E) in 2006. A 10% decrease is equivalent to 529 MTCO2E. The university successfully achieved that reduction in 2008. In fact, between 2006 and 2010, Temple reduced its emissions associated with solid waste by 19%.

Although it reached its 10% greenhouse gas emissions reduction benchmark, the Climate Action Plan identified additional waste minimization and recycling recommendations, which are listed below:

• Increase the recycling rate from 32% to 40% by 2015;
• Increase outdoor recycling opportunities to ensure that every trash can is accompanied by a recycling can;
• Explore composting of food waste;
• Review opportunities in the food service areas to replace disposable dinnerware and eating utensils in all dining halls;
• Review business practices that contribute to excess waste; and,
• Engage students in residence halls to reduce waste.

It should be noted that the Climate Action Plan did not identify a specific target for the reduction of trash. A goal and benchmark system for waste reduction may be something that the Waste Minimization and Recycling Committee considers as a way to evaluate the success of the university’s efforts.

This report will explore opportunities on campus to increase its recycling rate to 40% while minimizing waste generated by operations and individual community members.

The Office of Sustainability, Housekeeping Department, the Computer Recycling Center, Facilities

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