UCC’s Sustainability and Climate Action Plan is Taking Root
By Science and Environment Editor Leah Moynihan
UCC Green Campus was established in 2007 and since then amazing achievements have been made. The initiative most familiar to students is the recent announcement of UCC becoming a plastic free campus. This has been embraced by students who have changed their behaviour by carrying around reusable water bottles and coffee cups. Other accomplishments by UCC Green Campus include the lush community garden which is open to all university staff and students. Yet did you know that the UCC Sustainability and Climate Action Plan came out this year? The main aim is to encourage students and staff to become more sustainable and to decrease negative impacts on the environment.
The plan spans over five years (2023 to 2028) and sets out green goals that the university hopes to achieve. UCC’s Sustainability and Climate Action Office is responsible for the implementation of the plan, as well as publicising its outputs. Some of the main targets include UCC becoming a zero-waste campus by the end of the decade. This would be an amazing achievement as it is essential that we minimise our waste production. Another ambitious target is to make UCC a carbon neutral campus by 2040. UCC has signed the United Nations Framwork Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)’s Race to Zero campaign, which urges thousands of signatories to shift to a decarbonized economy. However, this will need proper infrastructure need to be put in place on campus and will come at a high cost. Despite this, the plan intends to implement building upgrades and UCC has stated that it is committed to becoming a leading university in terms of reducing environmental impact.
Another key area highlighted in the plan is research. UCC’s Environmental Research Institute is developing new technologies that can help protect the environment. The plan also outlines that further “Living Lab” funding should be secured by 2024. This fund will support projects that aim to reduce carbon emissions or projects that include sustainability as their main goal. It is expected that all labs will be certified as green labs by 2026. Additionally, the plan outlines the need for further action in terms of education and training in climate change throughout the university. UCC’s “Sustainable Futures” programme was awarded €3.9 million under the HEA Human Capital Initiative. This will bring in more training to assist in the transition to zero carbon.
Furthermore, the plan sets out a carbon budget that UCC must adhere to, regardless of its future growth plans. All suppliers are now required to submit their carbon footprint, and agencies cannot work outside of their allocated carbon budget for scope 1 and 2 greenhouse emissions. Scope 1 emissions are directly related to a business’s activities. Scope 2 emissions are indirectly related to a business’s activities, and this can include the purchase of electricity from another company. UCC aims to reduce its annual energy usage considerably, and this is a big step towards reducing environmental impact that other businesses should look up to.
The UCC Sustainability and Climate Action Plan sets many ambitious targets, and its timeline is possible if appropriate amounts of time and money are invested. 2040 seems far away but we must not get comfortable. In order to become a carbon neutral campus, students must also play their part. Student commuting is the largest contributor to scope 3 emissions and UCC intends to decrease its commuting emissions by 35% by 2028. However, it is up to students to find more sustainable means of travel, whether it is carpooling, cycling, or taking the bus. It is not always easy, but if we expect to reach the targets set out in the plan, we must change our habits. Perhaps carbon neutral businesses will be common in the future, and UCC has taken the initiative by becoming the world’s first Green Flag university.
