Download The University of St Andrews has a goal to become carbon

The University of St Andrews has
a goal to become carbon
neutral for its energy supply by
2016. This document outlines our
three part Energy Strategy
which will help us achieve this
goal and details the projects we
currently have in place to
reduce our carbon emissions.
University
of St
Andrews
Our Energy
Strategy
Environment Team, Estates.
The University has a three part energy strategy in place to help us become
carbon neutral. It is delivered through our Carbon Management Plan and is
supported by University Court via the 2012 to 2022 Sustainable Development
Strategy. The three parts of the energy strategy include; behaviour change,
micro and macro renewables and energy investment and efficiency.
Interhall Energy
Interhall energy saves
up to 45 tonnes of
carbon/yr
Transition
Environmental Facilitators
Behaviour
Change
Staff and Students
doing practical
carbon reduction
projects
Micro
Solar thermal on
buildings with
high water use.
Solar PV & GSHP
Environmental Facilitators
are making changes
which reduce our energy
use in university buildings
and cascading info to all
staff.
Macro
Micro and
Macro
Renewables
Kenly Wind Farm will save
19,000 tonnes of carbon
per annum, Guardbridge
Energy Centre will save
12,000 tonnes per annum
Buildings
Buildings built to
BREAAM
excellent
standard which
ensures energy
efficiency of the
building
Energy Investment
and Efficiency
Salix
We have 120 Salix
projects which
save 3180 tonnes
of carbon per
annum.
= Carbon neutral
for energy
(target: 2016)
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Behaviour Change
Environmental Facilitators
In order to facilitate behaviour change we have developed the Staff
Environmental Facilitators Network. The purpose of this is to engage colleagues
and to encourage environmental behaviours in each school/unit to reduce the
University’s overall carbon footprint. In our first run on the programme we have
49 staff members enrolled as Environmental Facilitators.
Specific behaviours include:
 Reducing energy consumption through ‘smart’
workplace operations
 Reducing the amount of recyclables going to landfill
 Reducing the amount of overall waste by promoting



reuse
Reducing water wastage
Promoting and advising on sustainable work travel options
Encouraging sustainable purchasing
Our 1st group of Environmental Facilitators
Interhall Energy
As well as encouraging behavior change amongst staff (above) we also have
initiatives in place to help change the behavior of students. For example, an
Interhall Energy Competition has been running at the University since 2006/2007.
This competition aims to encourage students to take actions towards reducing
their energy consumption in halls of residence.
Monitoring has revealed that over 45 tonnes of CO2 have been saved.
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Results of 2011/12 Interhalll competition
There are also numerous environmentally friendly student-led groups and societies
that we support to help them raise awareness amongst the student body.1
Transition University of St Andrews
A group of students and staff at the University have been recognised for its
innovative ideas to tackle climate change at a local level, with a recent renewed
funding award of nearly £350,000 from the Scottish Government. This Climate
Challenge Fund money is funding one full time member staff and numerous
student interns at the University to run various carbon reduction projects, mainly
centred around behavior change. For more information visit: www.standrews.ac.uk/transition
1
E.g. OneWorld, Wild Soc, Greenpeace Society and Sustainable Development Society
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Micro and Macro
Renewable
Energy
MACRO
Kenly Wind
Computer generated image of Kenly
We have currently have a live planning application for the installation of 6 x
2megawatt wind turbines on the University Farm at Kenly, saving 19,000Tonnes
of carbon per year.
Some of the impacts of this project include:







Direct and indirect investment in Fife - GDP benefit of £7.1M for Fife and
£0,.6M to the East Neuk.
Job creation during construction and maintenance
Community benefit fund - £1M for the local community
Helps achieve Scotland’s objective of 100% of renewable electricity by
2020
Means University complies with its duty under the Climate Change
(Scotland) Act 2009
Secures energy pricing into the future
University will self-sufficient for electrical energy
Guardbridge Energy Centre
We also have plans for £20M+ investment into the regeneration of the former
Guardbridge paper mill with the aim of creating an Energy Centre to generate
heat (and power) which will reduce University carbon emissions by 12,000T per
year.
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Exterior of Guardbridge
MICRO
Alongside the larger energy projects we are also actively deploying a range of
micro renewable energy technologies across the estate, including:
Solar thermal
The University has installed a series of solar thermal panels on the new Fife Park
Apartment blocks to heat hot water. These panels generate 45,000kWh of
heat, saving 10 tonnes of carbon emissions annually.
120m2 of solar thermal evacuated tubes have also been installed at the New
Medical Building and 27 panels have been installed at New Hall to heat hot
water.
Solar panels at DRA
Solar PV
We also have installed solar PV (photovoltaic) panels to generate electricity at
MUSA and the New Arts building.
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Ground Source Heat Pump
In addition, a ground source heat pump has been installed at the University
Museum (MUSA) top heat the building which saves 4 tonnes of carbon per year.
Energy Investment
and Efficiency
Salix Fund
The University has funding through Salix, an independent company
funded by the Carbon Trust, to reduce carbon emissions by investing in
energy efficiency measures.
The University has emerged as the leading public sector body in the UK in
2011/2012 for the use of our Salix fund. The University has so far invested £2.5
million to a variety of energy saving initiatives. We have 121 projects; saving
3,180 tonnes per annum and are 1st in the UK for both committed and
commissioned spend.
BREAAM and Buildings
Across the University, all new buildings since 2010 are designed to BREAAM
Excellent standards. BREAAM building certification is a
leading design and assessment method for sustainable
buildings that includes a wide range of environmental
standards including energy efficiency, construction
materials, water use, waste and more. This ensures that all new infrastructure at
the University is designed to the highest green standards and to adapt to cope
with climate change.
Examples include student residences such as Fife Park Apartments, and science
buildings such as the Medical & Biological Sciences Building. The BMS Annex
building is the first ‘Outstanding’ building in Scotland and first “Outstanding”
research lab in the UK and is enabling £1.6M research on the treatment of
influenza.
FURTHER INFORMATION
For more information on our energy strategy please contact Roddy Yarr
(Environment and Energy Manager) or David Stutchfield (Energy Officer) in the
Environment Team at [email protected]
Please also see information and policies on our website
www.st-andrews.ac.uk/environment
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