Crimson goes green; Harvard plans sharp cut in greenhouse gases

July 9, 2008 04:12 PM Email| Comments (0)| Text size – +

By Globe Staff

Harvard plans to sharply reduce its greenhouse gas emissions in the next eight years, Drew Faust, the university president, said.

The initial, short-term goal for the university will be to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 30 percent from a 2006 baseline by 2016, Faust said yesterday in a statement.

"All of us share a compelling interest in confronting the challenge of environmental sustainability, now widely recognized as one of the paramount issues of our time. Reducing the emission of greenhouse gases is a crucial part of rising to that challenge," she said.

She said the university would primarily emphasize improvements in its operations -- for example, by enhancing energy efficiency, reducing the greenhouse gas produced by energy sources, and managing demand.

"What is at stake is nothing less than a change in the culture of how we work and live," she said. "Every member of the Havard community has a role to play in reducing our GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions -- by conserving energy ourselves, by motivating others to do so, and by envisioning and implementing new ideas that will contribute to our progress."

Faust issued her statement after the release of a report by a Greenhouse Gas Task Force that she convened in February.

She also said that Harvard's research and teaching should "generate knowledge" about how to use the "discoveries of science, of technology, and of policy analysis to create a sustainable environment for generations to come."

"Harvard is setting a standard that others should follow," said George Bachrach, president of the Environmental League of Massachusetts.

Bachrach said that some major corporations in the state have also been leaders in reducing their greenhouse gas emissions and pointed to a bill pending in the Legislature intended to reduce the state's emissions overall.

"All of us in the Commonwealth collectively need to set a goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions substantially," he said.

There is a growing sustainability movement on campuses nationwide, the New York Times reported in May.