Carbon Dioxide is produced when fossil fuel such as gas, oil or diesel burnt in the air to produce energy for heating, electricity generation or transport. Carbon emissions are categorised as:
Scope 1
Produced directly by burning fuel on site such as gas for heating and diesel in vehicles
Scope 2
Generated through the offsite generation, such as electricity
Scope 3
Arising indirectly from core operations, including procurement of goods, business travel, waste disposal, water consumption and student and staff commuting
Energy produced by fossil fuel not only produced large amount of carbon dioxide, which affects climate change, but also contributes to other environmental problems including smog and acid rain.
The university has a target to reduce 43% scope 1 and 2 carbon emissions from 2005-2006 baseline by 2020.
We have exceeded our target and achieved 45% carbon reduction in 2019.
We are in the progress of reviewing our performance and setting a new target for 2020 onwards. We aim to achieve building net zero carbon by 2030.
Our Achievements
100% Renewable Electricity
We now emit over 4500 fewer tonnes of carbon each year than we did 10 years ago- the equivalent of 525 typical UK homes worth of emissions
Over the past 10 years, we have reduced total energy usage by 14% (25% reduction in electricity and 5% reduction in gas)
We made the switch from fossil fuels to 100% renewable for our electricity supply; 69% from solar, 21% from hydro and 10% from thermal and anaerobic digestion
University of Westminster
309 Regent Street, London W1B 2UW
General enquiries: +44 (0)20 7911 5000
Course enquiries: +44 (0)20 7915 5511
The University of Westminster is a charity and a company limited by guarantee. Registration number: 977818 England