Upon first hearing about the Office of Sustainability’s release of the Climate Action Plan I was (naively) over-enthusiastic, thinking to myself “Great! Climate problem solved for the UO!” I didn’t kid myself for too long though, and soon realized that bringing the CAP to fruition is going to require an enormous amount of cooperative effort by University-affiliated people all across the board.
The figure that jumped off the page right away for me was the 31 percent of the University’s total emissions that come from travel on behalf of the University. The figure accounts for “auto travel for university business, faculty and staff air travel, athletic staff and student travel, and student travel to and from UO sanctioned study abroad programs.” While I was aware that air travel is particularly environmentally costly, never would I have thought it accounted for such a huge amount of the University’s overall emissions.
But not only did the 31 percent travel number shock me; it hit home because of how personally implicated I am as a student-athlete who travels with my softball team to and from at least seven trips over the course of our spring season, all involving round trip air travel. But this wasn’t the first time I’ve thought about the issue.
Over my time as a Duck athlete, I’ve experienced a recurring sense of guilt that sets in as I pack my bag for a weekend trip to Palm Springs or Arizona and lingers on-and-off inside my mind all the way until we’re waiting at baggage claim at 3:30 a.m. on Monday morning back in Eugene. During takeoff of nearly every flight, my mind naturally wanders back to the fact that air travel is one of the worst things people can do if they’re concerned about their personal carbon footprint, and I fret about my lack of control of the situation save forsaking the sport and team I love. Eventually I recline my seat the two or so inches allotted me and decide to have a great weekend in spite of my newest contribution to the warmth of the planet.
But this is a serious problem. Not just for me and my conscience, but for the University and its commitment to becoming carbon neutral by 2050. In the CAP, travel is designated as a “scope III” issue, which means it’s one that the University has little control over, especially since it cannot mandate how users get to and from the events they’re committed to. That known, perhaps the only way to account for the travel emissions will be to “offset” them; that is, purchase carbon offsets from private companies that offer consumers the option of neutralizing the CO2 emissions caused by their trip. Essentially, an environmental “indulgence” program for the 21st century.
But Mark Nystrom, UO grad student and co-author of the CAP, says that there are problems with this idea too. Currently there is no regulation of the carbon market, and purchasing offsets is totally voluntary.
“Carbon offsetting is a fuzzy math,” Nystrom said in an interview, “and before the University starts spending thousands on offsets, there needs to be some regulation.” Ideally, Nystrom said he would like to see a local carbon offsetting market, but that at present it’s so expensive that it’s unrealistic.
Quagmire, it seems. At least until there is sound policy in place that requires money being put into traveler’s budgets for legitimate carbon offsetting projects.
“I believe in the power of policy,” says Nystrom, “but we don’t want to see a big brother state either.”
I shudder at the thought of cameras everywhere, monitoring and counting the CO2 emissions of all our flights, food and purchases.
Before I get too much more absorbed in the Orwellian scenarios that taunt my imagination, I’d like to advocate for a little bit of open, organized communication. This University has such an abundance of resources; not excluding the talents of all the incredibly bright people who abound here. Let’s harvest that energy. And hey, it’s renewable! Nystrom says that “higher order discussions” will be huge in the coming years of planning and implementing the CAP.
Mike Bellotti is doing a great job as the new athletic director, and I’m sure that Steve Mital, director of the Office of Sustainability, wasn’t just picked out of a hat for such an important position either; so how great would it be if these two guys could get together and talk about where to take this thing next? Carbon-neutral sporting events? A public service announcement addressing climate change by Jeremiah Masoli? The possibilities abound.
My 13-year-old sister plays softball too, and dreams of being a Duck athlete one day. I smile to imagine her and her team boarding a high-speed rail with ample leg room and wireless Internet on their way down to play UCLA for a weekend, not having to worry a bit (like her sister did) about a pit at the bottom of her stomach telling her something was slightly wrong with the trip.
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A Duck trying to travel green
Daily Emerald
November 15, 2009
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