Portland State University will sell Chevrolet carbon credits for two and a half years of energy efficiency projects totaling some 1,500 tons of avoided carbon emissions in a move to raise funds for further campus sustainability projects.
The deal is part of a voluntary carbon reduction initiative by Chevrolet, launched in 2010 with the goal to prevent up to 8 million metric tons of carbon emissions from entering the earth’s atmosphere by investing in community-based carbon reduction projects across the country. Through this initiative, Chevrolet will buy and retire carbon credits, meaning they will not be used to offset emissions related to specific Chevrolet operations or products — or those at any other site.
Portland-based nonprofit, Bonneville Environmental Foundation, served as Chevrolet’s buyer agent and managed transactions with 12 universities.
Through BEF, Chevrolet has acquired carbon reductions at universities across the US, from projects including wind energy, forestry conservation and energy efficiency.
Chevy hired Climate Neutral Business Network, a consultancy based in the Portland suburb of Lake Oswego that specializes in helping Fortune 500 companies adopt climate-friendly practices, to manage the program.
The carbon performance methodology enables campuses to make money via greenhouse gas reductions that result from energy efficiency.
Other campuses participating in the Chevy Clean Energy Campus Campaign include: Spelman College, Boston University, Rochester Institute of Technology, University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point and the University of Illinois at Chicago.