The University of Illinois, which has been actively making an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from its buildings since 2010, has joined three other educational institutions in selling carbon offset credits to Chevrolet. Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana and Valencia College in Orlando, Florida both sold carbon credits to Chevy earlier this year, however the 150,000 tonnes worth they are buying from the U of I marks the automaker’s largest college project investment to date.
Chevrolet has been one of the most active and prominent buyers of carbon offset credits in recent years. The company promised to prevent up to eight million metric tons of carbon from entering the atmosphere in 2010 and is now well on its way, having reduced 7.7 million tonnes of carbon to date.
“Turning a university’s energy-efficiency progress into carbon credits enables them to reinvest in even more clean energy technologies,” David Tulauskas, director of sustainability at General Motors, said in a statement. “Chevrolet is supporting the ingenious ways people are reducing carbon and spreading the word about the benefits of a clean energy future.”
The carbon offset credits are generated through the Verified Carbon Standard, a credit registry which awards universities, colleges and primary and secondary schools with carbon credits when they take energy reducing initiatives. The U of I put forth a climate action plan in 2010 where it set targets for reducing GHG emissions by 15% for 2015, 30% by 2020, 40% by 2025 and 100% by 2050. The campus is set to surpass its 2015 goal.
To help meet their GHG reduction goals, the university improved heating and air conditioning systems in dozens of its buildings and used ‘energy performance contracting’, which uses future energy savings to fund efficiency improvements around the school.
“As a campus, we need to do our part to eliminate emissions into the atmosphere, which is having catastrophic global effects,” said Professor Ben McCall, Associate Director for Campus Sustainability. “But our reach can be so much larger than just our own emissions. We want to be an example to the world and teach our students how to go about emission reductions so other campuses, companies, governments and more can implement these sorts of changes the world over.”
Comments
Sounds like BS to me.
If GM released more EREVs based on the Volt, such as a pick-up, a CUV, and a larger sedan, then add the national marketing and sales of the Chevy Spark, they would not need to buy carbon credits. Instead they can sell them and make more money, while keeping America cleaner.
What GM is doing is buying these Carbon Credits from Universities and retiring them so that these credits don’t get used elsewhere. Its a way of funding an university with the added effect of helping to reduce other companies from using the carbon credits to cover their pollution.
This is all part of the Carbon Credit market that was created buy politicians and many who are invested in it.
Just check out the names of those who are involved or are supported by the Chicago Carbon Exchange.
As for selling more EV vehicles it would help but it will not solve the issues for the automakers as you have to have enough buyers for the over priced limited range vehicles the majority has not accepted yet as a whole. Building them is not a problem finding them homes is.
Add to this the recent removal of Coal fired Plants for electric that has just been enforced by the EPA with no reasonable replacement in the near future and the price of Electric will go up for all of us. Even the President stated so during the elections of the increase of energy prices while so few paid attention.
It will hit the fan in the not too distant future.
Everyone and every company should NOT participate in Al Gore’s carbon credit scam! Just say no to the latest form of wealth transfer!