UNC lauds green initiatives

The UNC Sustainability Office and various student environmental groups met Tuesday in the Student Union’s Great Hall for a celebration of campus sustainability initiatives.

The event, Campus Sustainability Day, featured displays of on-campus efforts for students to tour.

Chancellor Holden Thorp received the 2009 Campus Sustainability Report as part of the event. It outlines the strides UNC has made in sustainability programs and green initiatives in the past few years.

Here are a few highlights of the report.

Renewable energy

The report trumpets UNC’s Climate Action Plan, which details campus initiatives to become carbon neutral by 2050.

UNC also launched the Solar Energy Research Center in 2008. Solar panel research by UNC faculty members has led to the development of “solar trees” that allow solar energy to be harvested more effectively and cheaply than current solar panels.

Campus water use

In conjunction with the Orange Water and Sewer Authority, UNC has connected chilled water plants to a pipeline to allow treated wastewater to be used to irrigate campus athletic fields, reducing on-campus water demand by 10 percent.

UNC also has installed a stormwater collection system to help irrigate fields and flush toilets.

New distillation systems have been installed in the seven labs that use the most water, saving an estimated 47 million gallons a year, the report states.

Carolina Dining Services

Twenty-one percent of the food purchased by Carolina Dining Services is produced within 150 miles of campus.

Local grass-fed beef and eggs from cage-free chickens are served at both Lenoir and Rams Head dining halls. CDS offers six meals featuring local food during the semester.

CDS has collaborated with the Fair, Local, Organic Food student group to find local sustainable food options.

Academics

More than 150 courses in numerous departments relate to sustainability, the report states.Kenan-Flagler Business School offers a concentration in sustainable enterprise for MBA students.

“Over the past 10 years, the Center for Sustainable Enterprise has worked to integrate sustainability into the culture at the Kenan-Flagler Business School so that students are equipped to incorporate triple bottom line principles into their post-MBA careers,” the report states.



Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.