Climate change expert to visit UF campus next week for several programs

Leading environmental policy analyst Lynn Scarlett will be visiting the University of Florida campus next week to present a lecture and workshop and moderate a panel presentation.

In a keynote speech Jan. 25, Lynn Scarlett, a former deputy secretary and chief operating officer of the U.S. Department of the Interior under President George W. Bush, will discuss her thoughts and experience with shifting policies and implementation plans for energy and climate change in the U.S., as well as her work on Sen. Bob Graham’s Oil Spill Commission.

“Conservation in an Era of Scarcity,” starts at 8 p.m. in the Reitz Student Union Grand Ballroom. This event is free and open to the public. The program is presented by the UF Office of Sustainability, the Florida Climate Institute, the UF Water Institute and the Bob Graham Center for Public Service.

Scarlett will also give a seminar on her work in the Everglades at 3 p.m. Jan. 25 in Reitz Student Union Room 282 and a talk on “Green Careers” at 10 a.m. Jan. 26 in the Reitz Student Union Rion Ballroom. Additionally she will be moderating “Deep Water: A Special Report to the University of Florida by Oil Spill Commission Co-Chairs Bob Graham and William Reilly” at 6 p.m. Jan. 27 in the Pugh Hall Ocora.

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One Less Car Challenge Wraps

Earlier this term, students, staff and faculty from all over campus participated in the third annual One Less Car challenge by using alternative modes of transportation and logging these trips via UF GreenRide, the university’s carpool matching service.

While this year’s challenge saw fewer participants than in previous ones, 482 total registrants comprised 82 teams, their dedication remained steadfast. Roughly 169,621 pounds of emissions were avoided throughout the challenge, the result of 20,840 fewer trips and 174.927 single occupancy vehicle miles saved.

“This year’s challenge incorporated some new elements, while maintaining many of the elements that have helped establish the program at UF,” said Anna Prizzia, director of the Office of Sustainability. “We made an effort to focus more on individual action than in previous years, and are pleased to see the frequency and consistency with which participants logged their commutes.”

GreenRide, a system that exists independently of the challenge and is a resource for the campus community to find ride matches also calculates this savings in terms of fuel and dollars saved from reduced incidental costs. For the period of the challenge, August 23 through November 19, participants saved a collective 7,508 gallons of fuel, and approximately $96, 385. The system uses a basic formula to calculate a per mile savings on maintenance and ownership (i.e., car payments, insurance) to further reflect the opportunities and benefits of utilizing alternative transportation modes more frequently.

When taken together, the impact helps UF inch closer to its goal of carbon neutrality, while continuing education on the importance of personal action. “Based on a 2005 greenhouse gas inventory of campus emissions, we’ve estimated that roughly 10% of our carbon footprint is attributable to commuting,” said Prizzia. “In order to get this percentage as close to zero as possible, we each have a responsibility to identify opportunities in our lives, as Gators and as individuals in the larger scale, to make changes toward sustainability.”

Energy Summit Projects Show Strong Returns

Many people across campus often know little about the myriad ways sustainability is taking shape behind the scenes at the operational level, and they are sure are many. One area that has seen prolific consideration is energy. Over the last two years, UF has invested millions of dollars into a number of energy efficiency projects throughout campus. Energy Summits, convened by Vice President of Business Affairs, Ed Poppell, brought stakeholders from throughout UF together to identify projects that would save energy, improve operations & maintenance, and reduce UF’s carbon footprint. Representatives from Housing, University Athletic Association, IFAS, Physical Plant Division, Facilities, Planning & Construction, and the Health Science Center came together to identify and implement key projects to accomplish these goals. Since electricity for the university has a $43 million dollar price tag last year, and buildings account for over 70% of our carbon footprint, these projects help reduce costs as well as environmental impact.

As a result of the energy summit projects, most of UF’s buildings are now individually metered for electricity, allowing staff to monitor energy use more accurately and customize building systems to operate more efficiently. Major renovations and equipment replacements included chillers, boilers, and air handlers throughout campus. One project, replacing T-12 lighting fixtures with T-8’s had a return on investment of 61%, with $300,000 annual savings! Smaller projects, like installing occupancy sensors, upgrading filters, and replacing windows were also a part of the Energy Summit projects.

The upgrades and efforts conducted in response to the Energy Summit meetings reflect UF’s commitment to sustainability and carry the institution closer to its goal of carbon neutrality by 2025. However, based upon information gleaned from the 2005 Greenhouse Gas Inventory conducted, it was determined that around 30% of a building’s energy use is attributable to small equipment and behavioral conditions. This insight helped inform the design and implementation of the “Chomp Down on Energy” efficiency campaign to help educate and empower students, staff and faculty to consider the impact their individual actions have on the cumulative energy use (and footprint) of UF. All Gators can learn tips for energy conservation, and actively be a part of the sustainability story unfolding across campus.

Faces of Sustainability - Facilities, Planning and Construction

When it comes to the long-term vision for the physical space of the University of Florida, Linda Dixon, Assistant Director in Facilities, Planning and Construction, plays an enormous part in incorporating sustainability into each step of the planning process. The UF Campus Master Plan puts sustainable practices at the forefront of planning and managing the campus’ built and natural environments including buildings, transportation, utilities, and environmental protection. The current plan was adopted in 2005 following extensive input from faculty, staff, students and the community. An update for 2010 is underway, but most of the overhaul to incorporate sustainability was included in the 2005 plan according to Dixon. “The plan is based on a land use pattern that seeks to make it easy to walk, bicycle and use transit while protecting the significant habitats and open spaces that we have on campus.”

The plan’s transportation policies are very progressive, and Ms. Dixon works with many stakeholders including UF’s Transportation & Parking Services, Office of Sustainability, Physical Plant Division, and Gainesville Regional Transit System to make those policies a reality. She advocates for funding to construct new bicycle and pedestrian facilities, such as the new bike paths through Bartram-Carr Woods and near the Cancer-Genetics building. She also serves on the Parking and Transportation Committee, and facilitates an ad-hoc Sustainable Transportation Work Group that meets regularly to improve conditions such as bicycle parking, carpooling, bicycle safety, and employee transportation options. She herself enjoys using the FPC department bike to get around campus.

On environmental issues, Ms. Dixon relies heavily on the Lakes, Vegetation and Landscaping Committee as well as Erik Lewis, Senior Planner in Facilities Planning and Construction. Mr. Lewis maintains Conservation Area Land Management (CALM) Plans that prescribe environmental protection measures to be taken in natural areas on campus. Many of these recommendations were recently implemented with student funding from the Capital Improvement Trust Fund and grants from the Department of Environmental Protection.

To round out sustainable measures, Ms. Dixon also devotes significant time to issues such as energy efficient lighting, green building, and historic preservation, but adds that all of these efforts rely on a network of students, faculty and staff that are knowledgeable and willing to learn and contribute – all of which are in abundant supply at UF! Campus Master Plan and CALM Plans can be viewed at University of Florida FP&C Campus Planning .

Energy and Climate Change at UF

The main campus of the University of Florida uses approximately 470,000 megawatts of power from Progress Energy annually, and spent roughly $38 million for electricity in 2008. Because the majority of our energy comes from fossil fuel sources, such as coal and natural gas, energy use in our buildings is the primary contributor to UF’s carbon footprint.

In 2006, UF president J. Bernard Machen was the first to sign the American College and University President’s Climate Commitment, committing to reduce our carbon emissions and educate our campus community about climate change. The University of Florida has completed carbon inventory for 2004-05 as a baseline, and is working on an inventory tool that will regularly update. UF has also published a Climate Action Plan and set a goal of carbon neutrality by 2025.

For more information on what UF is doing and how to get involved, check out Chomp Down on Energy.

UF team sets open house for solar home that will compete internationally

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The University of Florida Solar Decathlon team will hold several events this week to showcase its project: a student-designed solar home that will compete internationally this summer.

The events culminate in an open house Friday where the public can tour the home that will compete in Solar Decathlon Europe, an international competition designed to advance innovation and research in solar, sustainable and industrialized housing.

The Project: RE: FOCUS team will encourage the UF community to “Make a Change, Not a Footprint” from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesday in the Plaza of the Americas with an expo featuring solar panels, renderings of the home, the home’s floor plan staked out to scale, and other information on the project.

On Thursday morning, Project RE:FOCUS will take over the 34th Street wall to inspire the Gainesville community members to make a small change in their lives to reduce their carbon footprint.

Friday’s open house will feature tours of the home, information about the project and presentations by College of Design, Construction and Planning Dean Christopher Silver, team leader and building construction professor Robert Ries and student team leader and doctoral student Dereck Winning.

“The Solar Decathlon gives students from across the university the opportunity to work together on a real-world project, and Friday will be the first opportunity for the team to present their work to the sponsors and the community,” Ries said.

The open house will take place at the UF Solar Energy Park, 2610 S.W. 23rd Terrace, from 3 to 6 p.m., with the presentations delivered at 3:15 p.m. Those who attend are encouraged to carpool to promote sustainability and due to limited parking.

The UF team, comprised of more than 125 students from four colleges and eight disciplines, will compete in Madrid this June in 10 categories that include solar power, innovation, sustainability and communication. The team’s entry fuses innovation with the design of the historic Florida Cracker House to further the field of solar energy and inspire solutions for sustainable living that fit market needs.

For updates on the house, visit http://www.floridasolardecathlon.org/

Writing Credits: Kathryn Watson

NASA awards University of Florida $870,000 grant to study land use cover change

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — University of Florida researchers have received an $870,000 grant to study how to better adapt to climate change.

The NASA Land Use Land Cover Change Program grant will fund an interdisciplinary project that will analyze relationships among climate variability, climate change, land use and land cover change. Using remote sensing applications and socio-economic surveys, the project aims to create models that could enhance planning for sustainable resource use and help the people in these areas adapt to climate change.

“We hope the grant allows us to better understand the social-ecological systems response to climate variability and so to allow us to develop understanding for future climate scenarios,” said geography professor Jane Southworth, the principal investigator. “Ideally, it will allow for better adaptation strategies for local communities under changing environmental conditions.”

The grant will support graduate students and allow the project to conduct summer fieldwork in Botswana, Namibia and Zambia.

To better illustrate the human suffering in this area, six doctoral students created a video documentary called “Living With Thirst,” which looked at the Vende people in the Limpopo Province of South Africa and their troubles related to climate variability. The video was funded by an Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship grant, pertaining to Adaptive Management, Water, Wetlands and Watersheds.

“We hope this video provides an introduction to the uncertainty and trade-offs faced in a region with high variability in rainfall,” said Andrea Gaughan, one of the students who worked on the video, “and how that will affect conservation initiatives balanced with sustainable livelihood decisions toward water allocation/resources.”

Video

Living with Thirst Part One
Living with Thirst Part Two

Author: Aubrey Siegel, University Relations