Colorado College lost its prized carbon-neutral status after six years because of rising prices of offsets and budgetary restrictions, opting to redirect attention to fossil fuel reduction efforts and campus sustainability initiatives.
The college first achieved carbon neutrality in 2020, fulfilling a 2009 pledge and becoming the eighth college in North America and the first institution in the Rocky Mountain area to reach the goal. It did so by reducing on-campus emissions by 75% through various initiatives such as building renovations, efficiency upgrades and on-site renewable energy.
It accounted for remaining, difficult-to-avoid emissions, such as college-related air travel, by purchasing offsets — tradable “rights” or certificates linked to activities that lower the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
At a time when the college is struggling to enroll its target number of students, Director of Strategic Initiatives and Sustainability Ian Johnson said carbon neutrality has become less of a consideration for prospective students.
“Even when we were doing it, it was something we had to explain. Because it appeared we were just buying our way out,” he said. “The student body isn’t necessarily recruited based on these things anymore.”
Colorado College is not the only institution to step back from neutrality. In March, Duke University dropped its carbon neutrality commitment in favor of a net-zero emissions goal, according to The Chronicle. Carleton College made a similar move in early 2024.
Recent studies on student attitudes toward sustainability when searching for a college are few and far between. In December 2022, College Pulse surveyed undergraduate students, and 80% of respondents considered it somewhat or very important that their college prioritizes sustainability.
An increase in offset prices and broader school-wide budget cuts made maintaining carbon neutrality impossible, according to Johnson.
“The offset market has changed and grown. The prices have increased dramatically. It’s scarcer to find quality ones,” he said. The school had been purchasing offsets from a Northern Colorado landfill.
“We have learned a lot in the past decade doing this work and look forward to sharing the knowledge we gained with our Colorado community and institutions across the country,” then-President Jill Tiefenthaler said in a 2020 statement.
CC has not given up its commitment to being sustainable. Carbon neutrality, Johnson says, was a stepping stone towards pursuing other sustainability initiatives.
“Most institutions and places are going away from carbon neutrality,” he said. “It was never meant to be the answer, right? It was sort of a bridge to what’s next.”
What’s next for CC? Shifting away from campus-wide fossil fuel use for normal daily operation, part of a strategic initiative Johnson calls the Energy Master Plan. The primary focus is one of the school’s main sources of carbon production — central heating and cooling.
“We looked at a whole bunch of different options,” Johnson said. “What we really settled on was geothermal. The technology’s there. The scale is there for what we need. Everything is basically there except for the infrastructure.”
Geothermal heat pumps use the earth’s underground temperature to heat buildings during the winter and cool them during the summer. They do not burn any fossil fuels.
Instead of relying on a single central heating plant, the Energy Master Plan proposes moving to a “nodal system” with multiple underground hubs across campus. This project would take around 12 years to complete, Johnson said.
There are plenty of hoops left for college officials to jump through before the Energy Master Plan can take off. Finding the funding for the multimillion-dollar project is one of them.
Earlier this month, The Catalyst reported that Colorado College is facing a budget deficit of $14 million following three consecutive years of underenrollment. Each department on campus, including the Department of Sustainability, took a budget cut.
Johnson says that given the college’s current financial situation, finding the money to get the geothermal project off the ground could be tough.
“Based on the conversations I’ve been having, we don’t necessarily have the money in our current plans to [shift to geothermal energy],” Johnson said. “Over time we could build it in.”
There are many unknowns left when it comes to funding, one being how the college could leverage the federal Inflation Reduction Act, which has geothermal provisions that sunset in 2032.
Even if the long-term savings of geothermal make the project worth it, it remains to be seen whether Colorado College can drum up funding for the upfront investment in the project.
Johnson’s office is currently working with architects to create design scenarios and get a clearer picture of the project’s price tag. After tax-advisor analysis of how the IRA may shape project funding, it will need approval from President Whitaker’s cabinet and the Board of Directors.
“I believe it’s the right thing to do,” Johnson said. “There’s a lot of noise out there calling for our attention … we just need to decide this is our priority.”