Reduce Hamilton College’s carbon emission 40% by the year 2025. Hamilton College will reduce its energy consumption and pursue the development and use of renewable energy sources. The goal is to achieve climate neutrality by 2050:
- Develop programs to raise awareness and encourage conservation by all members of the Community. Provide tools and incentives for conservation efforts.
- Continue to use Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) guidelines for Design in new construction and major renovations.
- Use space efficiently to minimize the size of the physical plant and its consequent energy consumption
- Ensure that the College’s academic and non-academic practices and processes minimize the use of hazardous materials and the production of hazardous waste.
- Continuously improve Hamilton’s recycling program.
- Emphasize and support the procurement of local products, encourage the development of local resources and reduce transportation emissions.
- Focus procurement on products that contribute to sustainability, including those products that are energy efficient, made with recycled content, and have the capacity to be recycled when their use has ended.
- Manage the Hamilton College Arboretum, forest and other landholdings to maximize their potential to store carbon, while ensuring their health, sustainability and contribution to the educational mission.
- Support and encourage curricular programming for environmental education.
ACHIEVEMENTS:
Hamilton has already invested in supplemental wind and solar systems resulting in 25 metric tons of carbon emission reduction). The array is expected to produce approximately 15% of the College’s current power needs.
Lighting upgrades in 2016 yielded savings of 312,000 kwh annually for exterior lighting and 1.5 million kilowatt hours annually for interior lighting.
Window replacements, coupled with heating system upgrades have produced energy reductions of 25% with a resultant decrease in emissions of 210 metric tons of CO2e.
Transportation:
As of 2016, Hamilton has achieved a 23 percent reduction in fleet emissions since the baseline year 2007 by replacing vehicles with more fuel efficient models.
The College will promote carpooling for employees and student
Excerpted from: Hamilton Climate Action Plan
UCAN United Climate Action Network 