When Barnard biology professor Hilary Callahan asked students to compare their ecological footprint at school with that at home, they found the results surprising.
Most students discovered that in New York City’s urban environment, they consumed fewer resources for food, shelter, transportation, and other activities than in their rural or suburban homes.
“When you have really intelligent people, there’s no excuse for people not to learn about choices that would make a difference,” Callahan said, adding that in a university community, people are more likely aware of their consumption habits.
New York, a relatively efficient city in terms of its energy consumption, is a good setting to learn about such issues. Jason Post, spokesperson for PlaNYC, city Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s sustainability program, said that “per capita, New Yorkers are far more energy-efficient than residents of suburbs or rural areas.” However, there are still ways that New York—and especially its college students—can work to reduce its carbon footprint and that’s why some local organizations are mobilizing efforts to “go green.”
Columbia has joined in that effort. In an e-mail to the Columbia community Wednesday, senior executive vice president Robert Kasdin announced that Columbia is in the process of crafting an energy plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 30 percent by 2017. Further details on the plan will be released to tomorrow.
West Harlem Environmental Action, Inc., which is committed to fighting “environmental racism,” has also espoused a number of initiatives, and advised the mayoral administration on the creation of PlaNYC. Stephanie Tyree, WEACT’s environmental policy coordinator, explained that New Yorkers’ relatively low energy consumption is largely due to the modes of transportation used. New Yorkers walk or use public transportation more than residents of other areas, and recent bike lane expansions in the city have made biking more popular, Tyree said.
In addition, New York’s large apartment buildings require less energy to heat or cool than houses in the suburbs do.
In April 2007, PlaNYC released a plan to further cut New York City’s carbon emissions by 30 percent below 2005 levels by the year 2030. The city emitted 58.3 million tons of greenhouse gases in 2005.
A Sept. 17, 2008 report showed a 2.5 percent reduction in the city’s overall carbon dioxide emissions compared to 2005, attributed largely to two new efficient power plants and milder weather.
Residential buildings accounted for 30 percent of the city’s carbon emissions by sector in 2005, and mass transit made up 11 percent of total transportation
emissions that same year.
On college campuses, “there is a lot of awareness about the issue,” Tyree added.
“People are starting to be intentional about how they’re living their lives and how it affects the planet.”
According to Callahan, college housing makes an “enormous” difference because college students live in small, multiple-occupancy rooms as opposed to larger houses which utilize space less effectively.
Callahan cited several other ways in which students could decrease their ecological footprints, though.
“One thing that causes students to increase their footprints enormously is long-distance travel by air,” Callahan said. “You can save water and save energy with small decisions about heating, cooling, and lighting.”
To address this issue on a smaller scale, the MTA is developing its Bus Rapid Transit program in Harlem.
The people who ride buses tend to be low-income and have the longest commutes, Tyree said. Under the new service, buses will make fewer stops and travel in designated bus lanes. According to Tyree, there will be one such line in each of the five boroughs, and the one in the Bronx will connect with the one in Manhattan, passing through Morningside Heights.
