- By Content Coms
- In Useful Stuff
Universities lagging behind on emission targets
Universities and colleges in England will miss their collective 2020 carbon emissions reduction target by half based on current trajectories, according to new research out today (15 April), writes Edie.net.
The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) set a target of a 43% reduction in carbon emissions over a 15-year period from a 2005 baseline. But publically available data from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) and HEFCE has revealed that a reduction of just 8.5% had been achieved by 2013.
The research, produced by sustainability consultancy Brite Green, predicts the sector will eventually achieve just 51% of the 2020 target, posing important questions about the effectiveness of existing policy mechanisms to achieve legally-binding emissions reduction targets set for the whole of the UK under the Climate Change Act.
