Archives
Time to act on climate
Environmentalist says UB can be trailblazer for change
By KEVIN FRYLING
Reporter Staff Writer
In signing the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment, UB is in a position to inspire other large research universities to reach for environmental excellence, an environmental leader told students and faculty Tuesday in a dialogue about campus climate neutrality in the Student Union.
Denis Hayes, National Coordinator of the first Earth Day in 1970, as well as current chairman of the Earth Day Network and director of the Bullitt Foundation, a $100 million Seattle-based organization dedicated to the environmental protection of the Pacific Northwest, spoke Tuesday in a series of lectures hosted by the UB Green Office. Hayes also presented "Here Comes the Sun: The Solar Solution to Climate Change" in a free lecture in Lippes Concert Hall in Slee Hall at 7:30 and "Greening Buffalo: Addressing Climate Change While Renewing Our Economy" at The Church on Delaware Avenue at noon.
"Carbon neutrality for a place as large and as complicated as the University at Buffalo is a breathtakingly ambitious goal," said Hayes. "The impact would be enormous. You've got the opportunity to do some things that are unique, valuable and trailblazing."
With constant headlines on the environment and the recent release of reports about scientific consensus on climate change, Hayes said faculty and students looking to encourage public interest in the environment face less of an uphill battle than he fought in the 1970s. The support of the administration is also a major advantage, he said.
"What you've got here is a wonderful situation," he said. "Capture their attention, get people engaged and then provide to them opportunities to act."
Beyond the careful, long-term planning needed to achieve a carbon neutral campus, Hayes noted large, symbolic achievements provide valuable momentum to environmental movements. "If you go all broad, systemic and gradual," he said, "it doesn't have the same sort of inspiration as one giant step." He pointed out institutions such as the University of California at Santa Barbara and Oberlin College constructed buildings that meet the highest standards of the U.S. Green Buildings Council to highlight their environmental commitments.
Other participants in the panel were Robert Shibley, professor of architecture and director of the Urban Design Project in the School of Architecture and Planning, who is overseeing UB's master planning process; Robert Berger, professor of law; Yarrow Axford, a research assistant in the Department of Geology; and Kelly Miller, an environmental engineering student and activist. Acting as moderator was UB Energy Officer Walter Simpson.
In response to audience concerns about the lack of parking on campus, single-person vehicle users and mass transportation at UB, Hayes noted other universities have tacked similar problems with free public transit included in tuition prices, expensive parking permits, student housing located close to campus and bicycling.
In the evening lecture, Hayes addressed the bigger picture and looked beyond personal lifestyle changes to the political and social action required to beat climate change and prevent the worst effects of global warming.
A significant reduction in current energy needs and transition to alternative fuels, particularly solar power, is the key, Hayes said.
He projected carbon dioxide emissions must peak no later than in the next eight to 12 years to prevent catastrophic temperature changes and estimated that the average world citizen in 2050 will need to use one-fifth the commercial power of a single American in 2006. His figures were based on projections related to population growth and standard of living increases in developing nations.
Wind, geothermal, hydropower and biofuels such as "cellulosic ethanol" ought to provide about half the power required, he estimated, but added the sun "is the only resource big enough" to bridge the remaining gap without using coal or nuclear power.
"The petroleum era is in its last hours," said Hayes, "We should not wait until all the oil, all of the coal, is gone—we should move to solar now."