Low carbon futures: assessing the status of decarbonisation efforts at universities within a 2050 perspective

https://v2.sherpa.ac.uk/id/publication/21924 © The Author(s) 2023. Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated in a credit line to the data.Background The implementation of sustainability at universities means that they can also play a key role in the transition to a low carbon economy, and in assisting global efforts towards decarbonisation. Yet, not all of them have so far fully engaged in this area. This paper reviews the state of the art on trends in decarbonisation, and outlines the need for decarbonisation efforts at universities. It also reports on a survey aimed at ascertaining the extent to which universities in a sample of 40 countries across the various geographical regions are engaged in carbon reduction efforts, identifying the challenges faced. Results The study has shown that the literature on the topic has been evolving over time and that increasing a given university’s energy supply from renewable energy sources has been the cornerstone of university-based climate action plans. The study also indicates that even though several universities are concerned with their carbon footprint and actively seeking ways to reduce it, there are some institutional obstacles that need to be overcome. Conclusions A first conclusion which can be drawn is that efforts on decarbonisation are becoming more popular, with a special focus being placed on the use of renewable energy. Also, the study has shown that, from the range of efforts being made towards decarbonisation, many universities are setting up a team with carbon management responsibilities, have Carbon Management Policy Statements, and review them. The paper points towards some measures which may be deployed, so as to allow universities to take better advantage of the many opportunities an engagement in decarbonisation initiatives offers to them.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Rapid carbon accumulation at a saltmarsh restored by managed realignment exceeded carbon emitted in direct site construction

Increasing attention is being paid to the carbon sequestration and storage services provided by coastal blue carbon ecosystems such as saltmarshes. Sites restored by managed realignment, where existing sea walls are breached to reinstate tidal inundation to the land behind, have considerable potential to accumulate carbon through deposition of sediment brought in by the tide and burial of vegetation in the site. While this potential has been recognised, it is not yet a common motivating factor for saltmarsh restoration, partly due to uncertainties about the rate of carbon accumulation and how this balances against the greenhouse gases emitted during site construction. We use a combination of field measurements over four years and remote sensing to quantify carbon accumulation at a large managed realignment site, Steart Marshes, UK. Sediment accumulated rapidly at Steart Marshes (mean of 75 mm yr-1) and had a high carbon content (4.4% total carbon, 2.2% total organic carbon), resulting in carbon accumulation of 36.6 t ha-1 yr-1 total carbon (19.4 t ha-1 yr-1 total organic carbon). This rate of carbon accumulation is an order of magnitude higher than reported in many other restored saltmarshes, and is somewhat higher than values previously reported from another hypertidal system (Bay of Fundy, Canada). The estimated carbon emissions associated with the construction of the site were ~2–4% of the observed carbon accumulation during the study period, supporting the view that managed realignment projects in such settings may have significant carbon accumulation benefits. However, uncertainties such as the origin of carbon (allochthonous or autochthonous) and changes in gas fluxes need to be resolved to move towards a full carbon budget for saltmarsh restoration

Correction : Low carbon futures: assessing the status of decarbonisation efforts at universities within a 2050 perspective (Energy, Sustainability and Society, (2023), 13, 1, (5), 10.1186/s13705-023-00384-6)

Following publication of the original article [1], the authors identified an error since Ayyoob Sharifi was missing from the author group. The missing author name is: Ayyoob Sharifi12 (E-mail: [email protected]) The authors’ affiliation is: 12Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences, and Network for Education and Research on Peace and Sustainability, Hiroshima University, Higashi-Hiroshima 739-8530, Japan. The Author contributions section should instead read: Author contributions WLF was responsible for the article’s concept and contribute with the whole manuscript; RMD, IRA and PM-H wrote the literature review of the manuscript; DGV, AS and CRPV wrote the method section; MAPD, WL, ALS, AS and CRPV wrote the results and discussion. All authors read and approved the final manuscript. The author group has been updated above and the original article [1] has been corrected

Participation and retention in a green tourism certification scheme

Tourism certification schemes offer a transitional procedure to a more transparent and sustainable tourism product. Engaging current and previous Green Tourism Business Scheme (GTBS) members in Scotland, this research addresses issues of retention affecting progression of sustainable tourism supply. Quantitative analysis tracking GTBS members over three time points reveals 2% growth but conceals significant flux in membership. Retention was calculated at 66%, where business type analysis discloses distinct issues among accommodation providers with 42% departing the scheme. Decline is greatest among B&B and guesthouses (61%), where poor and falling recruitment coincides with very poor retention (33%). Our analysis demonstrates that slow growth in membership is primarily a result of enterprises choosing to leave the scheme, rather than poor recruitment. Questionnaires from past and present GTBS members (n = 109) confirm the importance of personal proenvironmental philosophies and perceived business benefits in attracting members, yet anticipated benefits do not always materialise. The main reasons for leaving the GTBS relate to membership cost and unrealised benefits. Lack of scheme awareness, management, criteria, bureaucracy and time commitment were further departure factors. The paper offers some suggestions to address issues and enhance retention leading to sustainable growth among tourism certification schemes

Relationship between elevation change measured with LiDAR derived-DTMs and in situ measurements with pins.

In situ measured data (x axis) show difference in elevation between December 2014 (3 months after restoration) and March 2017. Left: Compares in situ data to elevation changes derived from LiDAR data taken in October 2014 and March 2017, and Right compares elevation changes between January 2015 and March 2017. No LiDAR images are available for December 2014. Solid lines show a 1:1 relationship and the dashed lines show the actual relationship (linear regression) between DTM-derived and in situ measurements (dash lines Left: R2 = 0.775, P 2 = 0.686, P = 0.002). LiDAR measurements are strongly related to in situ measurements and are not systematically biased when sampling periods are more closely matched (i.e. Right).</p