We can do better, together.
The University aims to cut 25% of its production of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) emissions within just three years.
To reach '25 by 25', the University will need to look at how it uses all types of power and fuel, the waste we throw away, the water we use and just about anything and everything that creates a greenhouse gas emission.
This is an ambitious target but we believe we can make it. We’ll need to look at different ways of working and we’ll need the support of every single member of the University community to achieve it.
Our 3 key target areas...
Energy
Our electricity is already produced through low carbon technologies and we’re looking at installing meters in all buildings and areas to see how we can best use our electricity, implementing necessary savings where needed.
The University will be looking at the best way to heat all its buildings and consider ways of reducing the energy needed to do this wherever possible.
Where we need to change: In 2020/21 our total electricity consumption was 12,959,017 kWh – the equivalent of powering 4,180 average UK homes annually!
Sustainable Bangor: Last year our on-site solar generation would have powered 20 average UK homes for a year.
Travel
Getting to and from the university and academic travel throughout the year produces a significant amount of CO2e. The University is looking at ways of making it easier for staff and students to car-share, use electric vehicles and jump on public transport.
Where we can make a change: According to the 2021 staff travel survey, the average staff commute was 12.1 miles, which makes cycling and public transport a reasonable alternative to traveling by car.
Sustainable Bangor:
Electric bicycles are available for staff to purchase through the Cycle to Work Scheme
Check out the map of bike racks and accessible showers around campus to help with low-carbon commuting.
Waste
Reducing the amount of waste that ends up in landfill is a vital part of reducing our CO2e. We will be looking carefully at what we purchase, what we can reuse and what we can recycle.
Where we can make a change: Over 57.7% of our waste is recycled, but we need to achieve 70% by 2025
Sustainable Bangor: 2021/22 data shows that 0% of our waste now goes to landfill.
"Don't waste plastic, don't waste food, don't waste power."
What is CO2e and why are we measuring it?
CO2e is a standard unit for measuring carbon footprints as it takes into account the impact that different greenhouse gases have in terms of the amount of CO2 that would create the same amount of global warming. That way, a carbon footprint consisting of lots of different greenhouse gases can be expressed as a single number.
The University's location-based CO2e (for Scopes 1 and 2 emissions) in 2018/19 was 9,491.90 tonnes and we are aiming to slash this to 7,118.93 tonnes CO2e by the year 2025.
At Bangor University, we measure our “location-based CO2e” and “market-based CO2e” in various ways, and we are reducing both of them. Location-based is the more industry accepted way of accounting for your CO2e reductions, as it is the one we are most in control of, so this is the one that we will be targeting.