UNIVERSITIES AND colleges in England will miss their collective 2020 carbon emissions reduction target by half based on new research projections.
The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) set a target of 43% reduction in carbon emissions over a 15-year period using 2005 as the starting point.
The research conducted by Brite Green on behalf of HEFCE predicts that the higher education sector will eventually achieve just 51% of the 2020 target, posing important questions about the effectiveness of existing policy to achieve meaningful emissions reduction targets set for the whole of the UK under the Climate Change Act.
Of the 126 Universities analysed, only 44 are on track to meet or exceed their 2020 carbon reduction targets and 82 are projected to miss them. Universities that decreased their CO2 emissions include Harper Adams University, Lancaster University and The University of Reading. Amongst those with increased emissions are University of Worcester, The University of Surrey, University College Birmingham and the University of Sheffield.
