Mount Ida Greenhouse Gas Inventory & Clean Energy Plan

In Spring 2019, UMass Clean Energy Extension (CEE) offered a course on the Amherst campus to (1) teach students the principles and methodologies of greenhouse gas (GHG) inventory analysis and clean energy analysis, and (2) begin to collect data and information on the Mt. Ida campus. The two graduate and four upper-level undergraduate students in the class then spent four weeks in the summer of 2019 on the Mt. Ida campus as part of the Clean Energy Corps, conducting a GHG inventory and evaluating clean energy opportunities for energy reductions through system controls, space management, and building energy efficiency measures, as well as for renewable energy generation on campus. The team engaged with staff from state energy agencies, NGOs, and utilities throughout the process.

The team produced a final report and presentation to the University with its findings and recommendations, available here:

Report: Mount Ida Campus Greenhouse Gas, Clean Energy, and Sustainability Planning

Presentation: Mount Ida Campus Greenhouse Gas, Clean Energy, and Sustainability Planning

Project Background

As the University takes on the ownership of the Mount Ida College campus in Newton, the site will become a substantial new facility subject to the Governor’s Executive Order 484, which sets aggressive goals for energy use reduction, renewable energy generation, and GHG emission reductions for MA state facilities. The Executive Order establishes the state’s Leading by Example (LBE) program, led by the Department of Energy Resources, to work with state facilities to measure, track and help meet these goals. The University will be responsible for reporting to LBE information on energy use across electricity and fuels for thermal energy and transportation, and to begin developing strategies for bringing the campus into compliance the LBE program goals. The project provided a research and public service opportunity for students helping the University in meeting these goals.