Path to Carbon Neutrality

Graph showing CO2 emission progress over time.

Northern Michigan University is charting a path to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. NMU has reduced its carbon footprint by more than 30% since 2010, and today we have one of the smallest carbon footprints of any public university in the state at 32,000 metric tons CO2e per year (CO2e means carbon dioxide equivalent, which is a measurement of all the different greenhouse gases into a comparable amount of CO2 by impact). This plan is a map, providing guidance and direction to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions further over the next 25 years. We recognize that the path to carbon neutrality will require continued monitoring and modification, especially as our technology, economy, and polices change. This plan will be reviewed every two years, and tactics will be updated as new information and opportunities become available. 

Carbon Neutrality Plan

Goals & Strategies

Target 1: 25% or more reduction in carbon emissions. Reduce from 32,000 tonnes of CO2e per year to 25,000 tonnes of CO2e in 2030. Target 2: Reduce 25,000 tonnes of CO2e per year to 16,000 tonnes of CO2e in 2040. Target 3: Lower NMU’s carbon emissions to less than 5,000 tonnes of CO2e per year by 2050.

These goals and targets may evolve as policy, technology and the economy changes in the coming years. The path to carbon neutrality will require continuous monitoring and route-finding to ensure that we’re effectively using the best science and resources available to reduce NMU’s carbon footprint to pre-industrial era levels.

Definitions & Context

Carbon neutral means that any greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere from Northern Michigan University’s activities are balanced by an equivalent amount being removed. Carbon neutrality is reached when all quantifiable greenhouse gas emissions are eliminated and/ or offset by investments in carbon credits or sequestration projects.

Clean energy is the generation of energy that does not produce greenhouse gas emissions. Renewable energy is the generation of energy from sources that can be replenished naturally over time.

  • Renewable & Clean: wind, solar, geothermal, small hydroelectric
  • Renewable but Not Always Clean: biomass, large-scale hydroelectric
  • Clean but Not Renewable: nuclear power

Climate positive means that activity goes beyond achieving net-zero emissions to create an environmental benefit by removing additional carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Carbon negative means the same thing as “climate positive.”

Climate neutral refers to reducing all greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to the point of zero while eliminating all other negative environmental impacts that an organization may cause or emit.

Decarbonization is both a method of climate change mitigation and the process of significantly reducing or eliminating carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the atmosphere.

Gross square feet is the total area of enclosed space measured to the exterior walls of a building. This is an umbrella term that includes everything in a facility, even unusable spaces (think areas in between walls). It’s the total space a facility takes up regardless of whether or not the space is used. 

A "Heating Degree" day is a measurement designed to quantify the energy needed to heat a building. It is calculated by the difference between the average outside air temperature and a base temperature. During a warmer winter, we can have up to 20% less Heating Degree days compared to a colder winter. 

Net square feet is the area of usable space that’s available for furnishings, equipment, and personnel. NSF is essentially GSF minus unusable space.  Areas included in NSF are measured from the inside finished surface of their surrounding walls, excluding any area bounded by structural columns, shafts, or outside finished surfaces. NSF is most often used for allocating department and program space.

Net-zero emissions means that no carbon and other GHG emissions are released into the atmosphere. Whereas, carbon neutrality means that you can compensate for your emissions (again, typically with offsets), net-zero requires complete abatement of your emissions – you have to actually get rid of them through efficiency, electrification, renewables and other means.

Scope 1 GHG emissions result from direct, on campus sources such as heating and cooling our buildings and fuels used in fleet vehicles. Just over 60% of NMU’s Scope 1 and total GHG emissions are from burning natural gas. About 1.1% of NMU’s GHG emissions come from vehicle usage.

Scope 2 GHG emissions come from purchased electricity produced off-campus. For example, NMU purchases energy from the Marquette Board of Light and Power to supply the campus with electricity. The GHG emissions generated in production of that electricity, off-campus accounts for nearly 40% of NMU’s total GHG emissions.

Scope 3 GHG emissions are all of the upstream and downstream GHGs resulting from indirect sources like commuting, food procurement, and university-sponsored travel. NMU has not begun an analysis of Scope 3 emissions, but plans to conduct a baseline assessment by 2026.

Sustainable investing includes strategies that shift natural resources investments to focus on renewable energy, stopping investments in funds primarily focused on certain fossil fuels and discontinuing direct investments in publicly traded companies that are the largest contributors to greenhouse gases.