Message from Barry Chernoff

Here is an email from Biology/E&ES Professor Barry Chernoff—to the students of the "Energy Resources" forum—about sustainability and climate neutrality at Wesleyan:

Hi Forum Members:

Jacob has written an important exhortation that I hope you will take seriously. It is critical for us to make sure that the administration and the entire Wesleyan community is aware of the important environmental issues facing us and the globe. But I ask that you opine thoughtfully and not to fall prey to slogans and buzz words. While such words as "sustainability" and "climate neutral" may express feelings that we have, they may not communicate well because of their ambiguous nature or because, in the case of "climate neutrality" the word may actually mean nothing. Take a moment and think about it. "Neutrality" as a modifier of "climate" means that we put nothing into the environment (that which surrounds us) that has a potential negative affect on the climate, which means that whatever we emit (including heat) must be balanced by some sink. That fact the we are aggregated as a university onto a campus that is removed from its post-glacial conditions means that we impact the climate and nature of this piece of the CT River Valley. Escaping heat alone, sidewalks, roads etc. contribute to a warming of this area that has important consequences for the fauna and flora. Just compare the climate and phenology of Middletown to where I live -- the difference is drastic. But beyond the local, there can never be a truly neutral system. Even if we were powered by 100% solar, it would take a huge amount of fossil fuels to build the panels, repair the panels and maintain the panels and wires. The fuel and electricity it requires to continually maintain and upgrade our buildings. The only way I could conceive of neutrality would be for us to purchase emissions credits in excess of our emissions with additional costs for heat, sewage and trash.

I suggest that it is approaching a minimal environmental footprint that we are after. Highly efficient systems, renewable energy, and environmentally responsible behaviors on the part of the entire community.

So please write but also think about our responsibility. As we learned fro Peter Staye 2 weeks ago, the largest single waste of energy (and hence emissions) on this campus is due to student behavior, especially those of our colleagues living in the wood frame houses. I think that we should bring to the table how we will work to decrease substantially the environmental footprint of our colleagues -- faculty, students and staff -- when we ask the administration to accelerate plans to rework the campus. Are we willing to consider an Environmental Honor Code for all members of the Wesleyan Community? Also, please ask yourself who is to pay for our march toward neutrality. We are members of this community for perpetuity and it is up to us to help make such renovations possible. Are you willing to invest real $ , effort and time to accelerate progress or are you just asking to transfer the responsibility of the payment to others for a righteous cause? This must be a joint effort of our entire community and I pledge to you not only personal $ but also efforts to modify the behaviors of faculty and staff if you will work on your peers.

I encourage all of us to write and to work cooperatively to make this a campus where our impact on the environment is minimized for the betterment of the region and the planet. I ask you also to acknowledge that Wesleyan has taken a leadership role by pushing an agreement reached among regional universities to lower energy use by at least 20% by 2010. The accord was not well advertised but it exists nonetheless (even Peter Staye mentioned this in his presentation).

Whether or not Wesleyan signs an agreement (President's Climate Commitment) is less important to me, and I hope to you, than is real progress towards an important goal. As a friend of mine on the campus of one of the Universities that has signed the challenge relayed: big words, little concrete action -- a "feel good proclamation". Let's not look for bragging rights or the status conferred by such agreements -- let's look to lead the pack by making real progress in changing facilities, behaviors and social norms.

I am really proud to be your colleague (though you might feel differently after reading the above). Learning with and listening to you about alternative energy in our forum convinces me that because of people like you there is hope for the future. You are the reason I came here and our enterprise this semester is nothing short of exhilarating. So let's work on this, but work on it in a constructive way that will be a model for others: with purpose, with goals and with changed attitudes among members of our community.

Blog away!

With all best regards,

Barry