Meeting Date: 
February 1, 2022
Date: 
02/01/2022 1:00 pm to 2:30 pm
Location: 
Zoom Meeting
Agenda: 

  1. Approve December 1, 2021 Minutes

  1. Workgroup Reports
    • Communications  
    • Conservation, Efficiency and Transportation  
    • Education and Curriculum

  1. Committee Membership Update and Participation in Workgroups
    • Several open positions
    • Update: “Teach-in for climate and Justice” concept?

  1. Status Check on “Path to Carbon Neutrality” Document

  1. 2021 Oregon State University Greenhouse Gas Report

  1. Earth Week activities – Education and Curriculum

  1. Conservation and Efficiency – Freezers, Refrigerators and Energy Use

  1. Oregon Climate Protection Plan Update – Lane Walter

  1. WOHESC Conference

  1. Other Business
    • New travel system (Concur) and carbon reduction 

  1. Next meeting
    • February 17, 10:00-12:30 PM

  1. Adjourn
Minutes: 

Voting members present: Jennifer Alix-Garcia, Lindsay Andrews, Lety Cavazos, Tess Collins, Ed Dever, Laurie Houston, Keith Jayawickrama, Laurel Kincl, Cinnamon Moffet, Jacob Putney, Shelly Signs, Randal Smith, Brandon Trelstad, Desiree Tullos, Beth Filar Williams
Voting members absent: Leela Magdaleno, Jason Weiss
Ex-Officio members present: OSU Foundation – Scott Elmshaeuser
Guests present: Brian Goldcrump, Katie Mackenzie, Lane Walter

Welcoming New Members:

  • Randal Smith – Supply chain is a big cause of C emissions and Randal addresses this in his classes. Interested in personal actions to reduce carbon emissions as well
  • Jennifer Alix-Garcia – Head of Applied Economics. Research interests include natural solutions. Would like to contribute her knowledge of carbon pricing as she helped with the first iteration of the OSU C price.
  • Scott Elmshaeuser – was asked by OSU Foundation CEO to fill in for Marlys as a non-voting ex-officio, and thought the Carbon Commitment Committee (C3) would be a good endeavor to support.
  • Desiree Tullos – works with life cycle analysis of products, and with her engineering credentials could perhaps bring some skills that would be relevant to C3

Action Item: New members were encouraged to get involved in one of the C3 work groups: Communications, Education and Curriculum, Conservation Efficiency and Transport (Carbon Pricing completed its first assignment and is currently not meeting)

December Meeting Notes

  • No additions. Approved.

Work Groups

  • Notes were provided in the agenda, in the interest of time the C3 did not discuss most of them in detail.

Teach-in

  • Discussed, work group decided to table it. Work group is fairly well committed.
  • Laurel Kincl is interested in joining the Education work group.

Path to Carbon Neutrality

  • Has not been released yet. A very recent version exists and was shared to the group. Was asked to put polishing touches on it on January 31. Paul Odenthal has reviewed it. Hoping it will go up to IP Becky Johnson in a couple of weeks.

Greenhouse Gas Report

  • FY21 purchased electricity went down 17%.
  • Air travel has decreased dramatically, from over 20,000 tons in FY12 to about 2,000 in FY21.
  • From a max of 145,000 tons, GHG went down to 98,000 tons in FY 21
  • Much of the reduction is due to the pandemic. Will they go up in FY22?

Earth Week activities

  • The Education and Curriculum Work Group has met twice. Wants to host some tabling event, with some activity. “Ignite” session. Could be in-person or hybrid. Ed has booked a room in Burt Hall (capacity of 30)
  • Lety – there will be a community fair in the SEC plaza on February 19.
  • There was interest in proceeding with the Ignite session (Shelly, Keith, Laurel, Tess, Jacob, Ed, Lety, Jen, Lindsay, Laurie).

Action Item: Ed will look into getting a bigger class room, such as in Austin Hall.

Action Item: Any other C3 members interested in supporting C3 Earth Week activities is asked to contact Lindsay.

  • Conservation Efficiency and Transportation is investigating carbon emission reductions via high efficiency refrigerators and freezers. The vision is to explore options to (1) financially support researchers to buy low-emissions equipment instead of continuing with old, inexpensive, energy wasting appliances (2) Get information, such as recommendations on models and standards, out to Colleges, Departments and other units on options and estimated energy use. As a first step, Brandon and Michael Freitag is monitoring energy use.

Action Item: Next CET workgroup meeting is scheduled on February 17 at 10 AM. If interested contact Beth Filar Williams

Conversations with Units

  • Keith, Brandon, Jon Dorbolo met with the College of Forestry executive committee in early 2020. The outcome of that visit was for COF to financially support a study on energy use for heating and cooling.
  • Central Administration will pay for the carbon emission reduction work outlined in the “Path”, but there could be opportunities for units to pay for additional work (solar panels etc.) For example, Athletics is planning on funding some work, and Library provided part of the funding for some lighting upgrade. Apparently, the university works on a “hybrid\decentralized funding model” so projects can be funded from various sources.

Action Item: C3 members were asked to look for opportunities to bring the topic of carbon reduction up with well-disposed Deans, Department Heads, and unit leaders.

Other Business

  • WOHESC: March 2-4. There are a 3-4 complimentary passes
  • Innovation Center – Is there a carbon reduction possibility?
  • Sustainability Office – hiring student workers - Policy assistant and Graphic Design.
  • Next Full Committee Meeting: April 5. Goal is to be hybrid.

The meeting adjourned at 2:30 PM

Minutes prepared by Keith Jayawickrama