Energy Efficiency, GHG Emissions  -  March 4, 2019

Lafayette College plans carbon neutrality

Lafayette College, located in Easton, Penn., has approved Climate Action Plan 2.0 (CAP), a major sustainability initiative developed to guide the college towards achieving carbon neutrality by 2035.

The CAP was approved in a unanimous vote by the College’s Board of Trustees and outlines specific steps to be investigated and implemented over a three-phase timeline, according to a blog post from the College. Recommendations cover the areas of energy, waste, and transportation, with a focus on immediate, high-impact actions that can reduce carbon emissions and improve energy efficiency on campus.

“I am enormously proud that the College has strengthened its longstanding commitment to sustainability with the approval of the Climate Action Plan 2.0,” says President Alison Byerly. “Lafayette’s unique identity as a liberal arts college with a strong engineering program makes us well positioned to achieve this goal. I am particularly excited about the teaching and learning opportunities the plan provides. It furthers the College’s mission as an institution that prepares our students to confront the challenges they will face as citizens.”

The CAP identifies a suite of strategies to reduce the campus’ carbon footprint, including:

• increasing energy efficiency and conservation
• establishing a “green revolving fund” to provide funding for projects that can reduce the College’s environmental impact and operational costs
• transforming the campus energy infrastructure to reduce heating and electricity energy consumption
• investing in renewable energy options, including ones at Metzgar Fields Athletic Complex, where there is a near-term opportunity to achieve on-site carbon neutrality