Zero Carbon by 2040

Our University has committed to reducing its scope 1 and 2 carbon emissions to net zero by 2040. Scope 1 and 2 emissions include gas consumption, electricity consumption, and fuel consumption used on site, such as for fleet vehicles. 

What have we achieved so far?

• Solar panels on six of our buildings:
  • Kedleston Road - West Wing Building
  • Kedleston Road - Sports Centre 
  • Markeaton Street STEM Building 
  • One Friar Gate Square 
  • Leek Engineering Building 
  • Leek William Morris Building

• Combined Heat and Power (CHP) - A CHP unit was installed when the boilers were last replaced at Kedleston Road in 2016. It generates electricity, and any heat produced as a by-product of the electricity generation is used for space and water heating
• Lighting - Fluorescent tube lighting continues to be replaced by more efficient LED lights
• Building Management System - This closely manages the University's heating and ventilation systems, ensuring they are only running when they are required
• Switching our fleet vehicles from diesel to electric - 25 diesel vehicles have been replaced by 14 electric vans and 11 hybrid cars
• Digital Solutions and Services - We have moved away from desk phones and have implemented a device power-saving policy
• An external consultant review of our buildings and energy usage - suggested projects from this review have fed into our latest Carbon Management Plan

Our journey towards 2040

We have a Carbon Management Plan which sets out how we aim to reduce our carbon emissions to zero. Some of our key plans include: 

• New Building Strategy - all newly constructed buildings will be carbon neutral in both their embodied and operational emissions and will not include any gas heating
• Renewables - our onsite renewable energy will continue to expand
• Fabric First Approach - existing building stock will undergo significant refurbishments to improve thermal performance
• Low Carbon Heating - gas boilers will gradually be phased out and replaced with low-carbon heating technologies such as heat pumps 
• Behavioural change - switch off campaigns, regular energy audits, and raising awareness amongst students and staff of the actions they can take to make a difference
• Carbon offsetting - a full review of carbon offsetting options will take place to enable the University to offset any remaining emissions

Find out more about what we're planning on achieving through our Carbon Management Plan 2023.