Zero Carbon by 2050

Our University has committed to reducing its scope 1 and 2 carbon emissions to net zero by 2050. Scope 1 and 2 emissions include gas consumption, electricity consumption, and fuel consumption used on site, such as for fleet vehicles. 

What have we achieved so far?

• Solar panels on six of our buildings:
  • Kedleston Road - West Wing Building
  • Kedleston Road - Sports Centre 
  • Markeaton Street STEM Building 
  • One Friar Gate Square 
  • Leek Engineering Building 
  • Leek William Morris Building

• Combined Heat and Power (CHP) - A CHP unit was installed when the boilers were last replaced at Kedleston Road in 2016. It generates electricity, and any heat produced as a by-product of the electricity generation is used for space and water heating
• Lighting - Fluorescent tube lighting continues to be replaced by more efficient LED lights
• Building Management System - This closely manages the University's heating and ventilation systems, ensuring they are only running when they are required
• Switching our fleet vehicles from diesel to electric - 25 diesel vehicles have been replaced by 14 electric vans and 11 hybrid cars
• Digital Solutions and Services - We have moved away from desk phones and have implemented a device power-saving policy
• An external consultant review of our buildings and energy usage - suggested projects from this review have fed into our latest Carbon Management Plan

Our journey towards 2050

We have a Carbon Management Plan which sets out how we aim to reduce our carbon emissions to zero. Some of our key plans include: 

• New Building Strategy - all newly constructed buildings will be carbon neutral in both their embodied and operational emissions and will not include any gas heating
• Renewables - our onsite renewable energy will continue to expand
• Fabric First Approach - existing building stock will undergo significant refurbishments to improve thermal performance
• Low Carbon Heating - gas boilers will gradually be phased out and replaced with low-carbon heating technologies such as heat pumps 
• Behavioural change - switch off campaigns, regular energy audits, and raising awareness amongst students and staff of the actions they can take to make a difference
• Carbon offsetting - a full review of carbon offsetting options will take place to enable the University to offset any remaining emissions.