Carthage College Carbon Offset Plan
Abstract
Climate change is an increasingly pressing issue nationwide. Many sources agree
that climate change is due to the increasing levels in carbon dioxide from the
burning of fossil fuels. According to the EPA, “carbon dioxide is the primary
greenhouse gas (GHG) emitted through human activities.” GHG’s are a global issue
and the reduction of them is necessary to improve the environment. Many colleges
have started climate initiatives and carbon offset programs to further help the
reduction process. There are 24 NCAA Division III sports offered at Carthage College
and one-third of the student body are student athletes. Being committed to a sport,
students must attend sporting events and use the athletic facilities for practices and
competition. By doing so, carbon is emitted via vehicle or plane when traveling to
destinations. Carbon is also emitted from the electricity usage to power all of the
athletic buildings. Since carbon emissions can’t necessarily be reduced at the source
i.e. the plane, vehicle or facilities, offsets are created to invest money in projects that
will efficiently reduce carbon emissions somewhere else. The purpose of the study is
to determine a carbon offset program for the Carthage College athletic department
that will benefit the school and the environment. The following three questions will
be examined: How can the Carthage College athletic department efficiently become
carbon neutral?, How much carbon could be offset from implementing such a
program?, How can Carthage benefit from an environmental program like this? To
implement a carbon offset program, the extent of Carthage’s carbon footprint for the
athletic department was determined. Three different carbon offset options were
looked at in this study. A cost benefit analysis was completed on each of the options
and price points determined.