The University is determined to manage and reduce its emissions through monitoring and reporting usage, resource efficiency, investment in mitigation technologies, and improved awareness.
- Reduce our contribution to climate change
- Reduce our spend (last year we spent nearly £1.6 million just on our gas, electricity and water bills)
- Conserve resources
- Comply with legislation
The University's Scope 1 and 2 carbon footprint during the 2020-21 academic year was 2727 tonnes CO2e (gas, fuel used within University vehicles, fugitive emissions and electricity). Scope 3 emissions were at least an additional 4400 tonnes (including water, waste, procurement), though we do not measure all Scope 3 emissions yet.
We have recently published our new Environmental Sustainability Policy and Carbon Reduction Plan to ensure that we continue to reduce our consumption, carbon emissions and improve our environmental sustainability across all aspects of the University. The University has set net zero targets for our Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2040 and Scope 3 by 2050, if not sooner. Our reductions will contribute to the net zero targets of both the Liverpool City Region (by 2040) and the UK (by 2050).
Did you know?
- We have reduced our emissions (Scope 1 and 2 emissions from gas, fugitive emissions, fuel used within University owned vehicles and electricity) by 49.4% between 2005-2006 and 2021-2022).
- Our carbon footprint from our halls of residence (Scope 1 gas, Scope 2 electricity and Scope 3 water and sewer) was 666 tonnes (2021-2022)
- We generated over 73,000 kWh of electricity from our solar panels
Carbon Reduction Plan
The University's Carbon Reduction Plan (CRP) covers energy consumption, fugitive emissions and the fuel used within University vehicles (Scope 1 and 2 emissions), waste and recycling, construction waste, water, supply chain emissions, business travel, and staff and student commuting (Scope 3 emissions). The CRP outlines out net zero targets and contains a range of carbon reduction projects, awareness raising campaigns, and feasibility studies, which will determine the scale, financial costs, and carbon reduction of potential future projects.
Current projects
- I LOVE MY Campus challenge for staff and students
- Improvements to the Building Management Systems (to allow greater control over the operation of the buildings)
- Working with our suppliers on their own sustainability journey, and creating their own action plan using NetPostive Futures Supplier Engagement Tool
- We have permanent clothing banks on all campuses to collect unwanted, good quality clothing, shoes, and other items
- Sanitaryware upgrades across campus
- LED lighting and presence controls across campus.
- Student printer paper is Woodland Trust Certified
Completed projects
- Refurbishment of St Julies halls of residence with electric panel heaters, PV, wall insulation, non-concussive taps and shower restrictors
- Refurbishment of Trinity with an Air Source Heat Pump, double glazed windows and PV
- Installation of non-concussive taps in both residential and non-residential bathrooms
- LED lighting on Ground and First Floor library book areas; Cornerstone
- Replacement heating and hot water boilers at Cornerstone
- Installation of gas and electricity sub-meters across the University (so we know which building is consuming what)
- Replaced single glazed with double glazed windows in HCA
- Increased the amount of insulation in the HCA West Wing roof
- Installed double glazing at Plas Caerdeon
- Installed Solar panels on the Health Sciences building
- Pack for Good 2019: we are working with the British Heart Foundation to collect unwanted items when the students leave their residences rather than binning them. In 2018-2019 (between October and July), we collected 444 bags of unwanted items, raising over £6,216 for the charity.
- Replacing the roofs and windows of Angela and Austin Halls of Residence
- Replacing roofs with increased insulation in Angela and Austin Halls of residence, School of Social Sciences, and Warrington
- Reducing the number of boilers serving halls of residence and replacing the domestic hot water pipes and increasing the associated insulation.
- "Don’t stand by and waste energy" – the quickest, easiest and cheapest way to reduce our carbon emissions is to Switch It Off
- Join our I LOVE MY Campus Challenge
- Think – Reduce – Reuse – Recycle
- Bring a mug with you to our catering outlets and avoid the 25p charge for a takeaway cup
- Explore the rest of the Sustainability pages for lots of handy hints and tips.
Why is carbon management important?
Reduce our contribution to climate change
Climate Change is recognised as one of the greatest environmental challenges facing the world. Carbon dioxide (CO2) is a greenhouse gas that contributes to climate change. A considerable proportion of the rise in greenhouse gases can be attributed to human emissions, with these changes potentially accelerating in the future.
Reduce our annual utility spend
Annually, we spend over £1.04 million on gas and electricity (that's ~£2,800 per day!), and nearly £255,000 on water and sewerage (~700 per day!); and the cost of utilities is increasing year on year. By reducing our consumption, we can make savings that can then be used elsewhere within the University.
Conserve resources
The fuel used to provide our energy is a finite resource and we need to conserve these reserves. The energy the University uses each year is enough to heat over 1,000 homes.
Water is a precious resource; it is not as abundant as you might think! Around 75% of the earth’s surface is covered by water, but only about 0.3% of it is available for consumption. Using water also increases out carbon footprint through using gas for heating the water, for pumping the water to its point of use, and for its treatment.
Comply with legislation
There is now wide ranging legislation, strategies, regulation and guidance throughout all sectors to minimise carbon emissions:
Climate Change Act (2008) - The British Government has adopted rigorous targets in respect of reducing carbon emissions (greenhouse gases), and the University sector in particular is expected to be at the forefront of sustainable practice.
The government wants the public and higher education sectors to lead by example through reducing bills and driving decarbonisation across the UK economy. We are in a unique position to make a key contribution through our teaching, research, our influence on students, staff and communities; through our business operations, and through the operation of our campuses.
