University of Minnesota , Morris Climate Action Plan
September 2009
Executive Summary
In 2007, the University of Minnesota, Morris (Morris), became a charter signatory of the
American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment. For the past decade, Morris
has been moving forward on a path towards carbon neutrality. The Morris community, which
includes students, faculty, staff, alumni and strategic partners, have been an important
integrative part of shaping a vision for our campus. Our goal is to produce more renewable
energy then we use, work towards energy self-sufficiency using local resources, and approach
carbon neutrality in 2010. We intend for our University to be a place where we ask and help
answer the big questions of our time. A liberal arts education provides a perfect foundation for
this exploration. Morris is a small, residential, living and learning community on the prairie of
Minnesota -- we are doing amazing things and developing amazing people.
To achieve energy self-sufficiency and carbon neutrality we have been taking a multi-step path
that tackles conservation and production challenges. Our campus greenhouse-gas (GHG)
footprint is broken down into three main categories (following the Scope 1, 2, 3 methodology),
which includes the GHGs we produce on campus by equipment we operate (Scope 1), the GHGs
we are responsible for because of our direct purchasing choices (Scope 2), and the GHGs we
produce indirectly because of our choices (Scope 3). About 40% of our GHG production is due
to scope 1 causes, 40% is due to scope 2 causes, and about 20% is due to scope 3 causes.
Recognizing conservation as an important first step, Morris is implementing a comprehensive
energy-service contract to reduce the total amount of energy we consume. We expect this
work will reduce our overall footprint by 10%.
West central Minnesota has plentiful wind and biomass resources and Morris is committed to
using these natural assets to achieve carbon neutrality. These resources were carefully
surveyed for their abundance and availability and we are working to tap their potential. To do
this, Morris has built a unique biomass gasification research and energy production facility that
will displace over 80% of our traditional fossil fuel usage, which is primarily natural gas. This
biomass gasification facility will use locally available biomass residues, which includes, corn
stover, wheat straw, soybean residue, wood residue and mixed prairie grasses as a source of
carbon. We are working with the scientific community to address long-term questions related
to soil health and sustainability. This gasification platform will also be responsible for meeting
the cooling load of our campus and will dramatically reduce our electricity demand.
Additionally, this gasification platform will produce green electrons through a renewable
combined-heat-and-power (CHP) plant. To deliver the campus’s electrical needs, we currently
obtain more than 50% of our electricity from a University of Minnesota wind turbine, the first
large scale turbine to be erected by a public institution in the United States. We have plans to
add additional University of Minnesota wind turbines that will increase our consumption of
wind-generated electrons to near 90%.
Our goal is to develop a community scale, integrated-renewable-energy platform that utilizes
conservation, wind turbine technology, solar thermal technology, biomass gasification
technology, steam turbine technology, and information technology to achieve carbon
neutrality. With all of these pieces in place, we expect our GHG footprint to shrink from 12,000
carbon dioxide metric ton equivalents (MTCE) to carbon neutrality, and perhaps carbon
negativity in the next few years.
Important Aspects of Morris’s Climate Action Planning
How Morris is mitigating its greenhouse gas emissions.
Morris’s baseline GHG footprint is around 12,000 MTCE per year. Through a combination of
conservation and renewable energy production, we expect to reduce this number to near 0
MTCE. The campus is implementing dramatic energy conservation measures that we expect to
reduce about 10% of our baseline footprint. This work includes direct investigation and
improvement of our lighting systems, insulation, windows, heat recovery systems and controls.
Currently, the campus receives over 50% of its electricity from a large-scale, University of
Minnesota, 1.65MW wind turbine. To further reduce its footprint, we intend to erect two
additional turbines that will be owned and operated by the University of Minnesota. With the
addition of these wind turbines we expect to obtain over 90% of our electricity from prairie
winds. The biomass gasification facility located on campus will displace over 80% of our
traditional fossil-fuel consumption with biomass residues, which are currently considered to
produce greenhouse gas reduction benefits. Our biomass gasifier will consume about 9,000
tons of locally produced agricultural residues and turn them into a producer gas, somewhat like
natural gas, which will be burned. Steam produced by the gasification plant will heat, cool (with
absorption chilling), and produce electricity (with a backpressure steam turbine). Our goal is to
use these technologies synergistically to produce the greatest reduction in greenhouse gases
and energy consumption. The vision is to develop a community-scale, integrated, renewableenergy platform that can be replicated by others with similar geographic resources. By
combining these technologies together we expect that we will be able to reduce our GHG
footprint to carbon neutrality, and possibly even carbon negativity, since the wind turbines will
be producing more green electrons than we can consume.
How Morris plans to make climate neutrality and sustainability a part of the curriculum and
other educational experience for all students.
Morris offers students a small, residential, personalized educational experience. At Morris, the
culture is the curriculum. Our motto for Morris is: A renewable, sustainable education. Our
students have active academic, extra-curricular, and social lives. These lives blend and intersect
with each other. From the beginning of their Morris experience they are introduced to climate
change and sustainability ideas. Students take the Morris “green tour” and learn about how we
produce our own energy. Our student run recycling program is widely used and conducted out
of a repurposed barn on campus. It’s hard to walk around the Morris campus without tripping
on a recycling bin. In the classroom, students can pursue classes that emphasize sustainability.
We recently launched a very successful environmental studies program at Morris that tackles
issues like climate change, population and biodiversity. We are continually adding new classes
that students can take to widen their perspective, from a renewable energy with biomass
gasification course to sociology of the environment and social development. Students have
plentiful opportunities to conduct undergraduate research at Morris, and most do. Students are
researching issues related to local agricultural production, sustainable harvesting of biomass,
antibiotic resistance at organic versus conventional dairies, algal production of biofuels,
synthesis of fertilizers from the wind, the economics of locally owned wind power production
versus corporate wind ownership, and more. During the year students conduct campaigns to
increase campus awareness of important sustainability ideas. For example, all of February is
dedicated to reducing energy consumption, learning more about climate change and ecofriendly actions, and exploring sustainability. Students living on the sustainability floor in the
residence hall explore many of these ideas in greater depth during the year. Book clubs on
campus, like Asking the Big Questions, tackle important issues related to sustainability. Last
year, the club focused on questions raised by Plan B 3.0. We are starting to survey our
graduates to understand how this living curriculum has impacted their consciousness of climate
change, sustainability and renewable energy possibilities.
Morris’s plans to expand research related to the achievement of climate neutrality.
Achieving climate neutrality is an important part of the research agenda of the University of
Minnesota. One very important aspect of this work has been the collaborative effort Morris
has with other research institutions in our region. For the past several years, Morris, the
University of Minnesota West Central Research and Outreach Center (WCROC), and the United
States Department of Agriculture - Agricultural Research Service North Central Soil
Conservation Lab (Soils Lab) have been working together to develop and understand the
sustainability implications of renewable energy systems in Minnesota. Together, we constitute
a rural research triangle; we call our collaboration the Green Prairie Alliance (GPA). Recently,
the GPA has been involved in developing knowledge in biomass gasification technology and
practice. This involves a wide variety of research issues, including, the harvesting and storage of
biomass, the densification of biomass, understanding the gasification properties and behavior
of various biomass feedstocks, assessing the impacts of biomass-energy systems on soil and
water resources, and biochar. Working together we leverage different research backgrounds
and strengths. We also provide a very unique learning opportunity for undergraduates who
participate in several aspects of this research within this Alliance. Morris faculty members are
also involved in the social science and policy research of how and by what means we achieve
carbon neutrality in Minnesota. One Morris economics professor continues to provide
testimony to the state of Minnesota about wind power economic policy and works with
students to provide a more detailed understanding of how ownership plays a role in this
ongoing debate. Developing a scientific and policy understanding of how these systems interact
with each other is a part of our mission. These are just a few examples of how our campus is
doing research related to sustainability and mitigating climate change.
Morris’s plans to expand community outreach related to the achievement of climate neutrality.
For many years, Morris has been actively engaged in the communities of west central
Minnesota. There are several ways that the University is involved in work that moves our region
towards climate neutrality. Morris has an innovative outreach arm, called the Center for Small
Towns (CST), which routinely helps to identify student and faculty talent in the University and
connect those resources to communities looking for assistance and opportunities to
collaborate. Several of these collaborations are connected to projects that help communities
understand how they might reduce their greenhouse gas production. The Morris campus is
located in Stevens County, Minnesota. This county has produced an initiative called Stevens
Forward!. This citizen-centered initiative, which includes members of the University, has set
ambitious goals for our county, including carbon neutrality by 2015. This initiative continues to
identify demonstration projects and other ways we can move our region toward this goal. To
further community development, the CST and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency have
partnered to launch an innovative service program in the nation, called the Minnesota
GreenCorps. Morris undergraduate students participating in this program will work with local
units of government and schools in western Minnesota to help them reduce their greenhouse
gas emissions. Also, the environmental studies major program at Morris is a part of a University
of Minnesota, system-wide, Engaged Department Program, which aims to increase the
interaction and collaboration between the University and the surrounding communities of the
region. Lastly, the University is a founding member of Pride of the Prairie, one of the longest
running local food programs in higher education in Minnesota. This program is working to help
reduce the miles between great food and our plates and increase awareness of community
supported agriculture, which provides much of the bounty at our table during summer and
winter. The Morris campus is involved in a wide array of community development work, from
local food systems, to eco-affordable property redevelopment, to renewable energy
implementation.
Graphical Representations of Morris’s Climate Action Planning
For several years Morris has been using a carbon mangement tool developed by McKinstry to help us
analyze our emissions, consider technology choices, and assess financial impacts. Additional analysis has
been provided by HGA Architects. The information below is provided courtesy of our work with those
two partners.
The following graphs have helped us plot our course the past several years.
The graph below shows the Morris campus energy source breakdown in 2004, with most of our GHG
production coming from natural gas usage and purchase electricity.
The graph below shows a desired trajectory for our campus in 2010. A brief explanation of some of the
abbreviations on the chart:
1) Biomass: refers to the biomass and agricultural residues used in our biomass gasification plant,
which displaces fossil fuel usage, mostly natural gas.
2) WT-1, WT-2: refers to wind turbine generated electricity. So, WT-1 is one wind turbine and WT-2
would represent a second wind turbine.
3) ST-1: refers to a backpressure steam turbine used to generate electricity from steam produced by
the biomass gasification plant.
The graph below is a path Morris has been on towards achieving a net negative carbon footprint.
Despite some challenges, we believe we are on track for achieving this reduction.
The graph below helps break out Morris’s fuel types by source.
What the graph demonstates is that our fuel mix will increasingly move from fossil-fuel based to
biomass- and wind-turbine based energy.
Concluding Remarks on Morris’s Current State
This document was prepared to help communicate to ACUPCC participants and others who are
interested in our climate action planning efforts at Morris. It was submitted as part of the reporting
requirements of the ACUPCC commitment.
The information prepared in this document and the progress Morris has made towards achieving
climate neutrality is due to the hard work of many individuals and partners.
Some specific individuals who are involved in this Morris’ GHG reduction efforts and the Green Prairie
Alliance are listed below:
At the University of Minnesota, Morris
Jacqueline Johnson, Chancellor
Lowell Rasmussen, Vice Chancellor of Finance and Facilities
Cheryl Contant, Dean and Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs
Thomas McRoberts, Director, Center for Small Towns
Jim Barbour, Gasification Engineer
Pete Wyckoff, Biology
Arne Kildegaard, Economics
At the University of Minnesota, West Central Research and Outreach Center
Mike Reese, Director of Renewable Energy Center, University of Minnesota, West Central Research and
Outreach Center
Joel Tallaksen, Biomass Gasification Coordinator,
Cory Marquart, Wind Engineer,
At the USDA Agricultural Research Service North Central Soil Conservation Research Lab
Abdullah Jaradat, Research Leader
Jane Johnson, Researcher
Don Reicosky
Other individuals:
Greg Ackerson, McKinstry
Doug Maust, HGA Architects
Readers of this ACUPCC report with questions, comments, or concerns, may contact the following
individual for more information:
Troy Goodnough, Morris Campus Sustainability Coordinator, good0044@morris.umn.edu