Ministry of Education's current position
The Ministry of Education reported carbon emissions for the year 2006/07 of 6544.8229 tonnes CO2-e. For several elements of this total, carbon emissions had to be estimated from a small amount of data - reclaimed mileage and base building electricity in particular could materially impact this total if the basis of estimation was incorrect. In addition, business travel in taxis was excluded because we were unable to obtain the data. Obtaining actual data to remedy these uncertainties is a priority for 2007/08.
The largest emission source for the ministry was travel, which formed 66% of total emissions. Of total travel emissions, air travel comprised 58%. The major objective for the 2007/08 plan will be to develop a greater understanding of the drivers for travel so as to identify where the potential for reductions may be, and whether workable alternatives to travel are possible.
Electricity forms almost 32% of Ministry of Education's carbon emissions. This is split almost evenly between scope 2 and scope 3 emissions; however the figure for scope 3 emissions is largely based on estimated data. The major objective for 2007/08 will be to work with landlords to ensure actual data for scope 3 emissions can be captured, and the potential and incentives for reductions identified.
Waste to landfill forms less than 2% of the ministry's overall carbon emissions. Although this figure is based largely on estimated data, it can be regarded as the worst case scenario. The major objective for 2007/08 will be to carry out waste audits on representative sites to obtain more accurate data. A reduction in waste to landfill will have a minimal impact on the ministry's overall carbon emissions, but is an important element in the overall Govt3 programme.
For 2007/08, Ministry of Education is not setting hard emissions reduction targets. Instead, the focus will be on ensuring that accurate data can be obtained and that a process of internal consultation is put in place to develop and agree how reductions can be made.
The key sponsor for the CNPS programme within Ministry of Education is Tina Cornelius, Chief Financial Officer. The officer responsible for the delivery of the CNPS programme is Helen McNaught, Manager, Facilities Management.
Supporting policies, plans and resources
Ministry of Education Sustainable Practice Action Plan 2007/08
Energy
Energy is responsible for 32% of the Ministry of Education's greenhouse gas emissions. 16% of energy emissions are from electricity purchased directly by MoE (scope 2) and therefore under our direct control, while the other 16% are scope 3 emissions and less able to be influenced by the organisation.
Initiatives already undertaken:
- Signed up to E-bench and data collection started
- Electrical design for new premises / refurbishments includes zoning of lighting, perimeter light sensors on floors where natural light is good, use of motion sensors in meeting rooms and toilets, installation of check meters where appropriate
Actions listed below aim to:
|
Action |
Responsibility |
Timeframes |
Measure of success |
|
Benchmark energy use of all metered sites using E-bench data for an effective Level 1 audit |
Manager,
Facilities Management |
By 30 Sep 2008 |
Historical data available for all sites
Sites for L2 audits identified
Anomalous energy use compared to similar sites
Sites that are representative of a larger group of comparable sites |
|
L3 energy audit of specific large sites where funds available |
Manager,
Facilities Management |
By 30 Sep 2008 |
L3 audits completed
Recommendations which will be implemented have been determined and costed
Funding for implementation of recommendations agreed |
|
Identify any previous energy audits with outstanding actions and implement where appropriate and where funds available |
Manager,
Facilities Management |
By 30 Sep 2008 |
Recommendations which will be implemented have been determined and costed
Funding for implementation of recommendations agreed
Recommendations actioned |
|
Contact all building owners re base building power data collection and strategies and incentives for reduction of energy use |
Manager,
Facilities Management / property management contractor |
By 30 Jun 2008 |
Actual base building energy data available for all sites for 2007/08 carbon emissions inventory
Willingness (or otherwise) of building owners to participate in reductions planning identified for all sites |
|
Investigate potential savings in energy consumption and CO2 emissions from the virtualisation of servers and PC desktops |
Enterprise Architecture team |
By 30 Jun 2008 |
Server virtualisation in place in Test environment
Issues and benefits of server virtualisation monitored and reported
Pilot PC desktop virtualisation
Issues and benefits of PC desktop virtualisation monitored and reported |
|
Establish consultative process to determine energy use reduction strategies and implementation methods |
Manager,
Facilities Management |
By 31 Mar 2008 |
Consultation process established, participants identified |
Transport
Transport is responsible for 66% of the Ministry of Education's greenhouse gas emissions. 24% of carbon emissions are scope 1 emissions from vehicle fuel, 3.5% are from rental cars and reclaimed mileage, and 38.5% are from air travel.
Initiatives already undertaken:
- Fleet audit
- Internal leasing programme which includes incentives to select vehicles with smaller engine size
- Enhanced cycle-friendly facilities at major National Office sites; and inclusion of cycle-friendly facilities in all new premises as they are developed
Actions listed below aim to:
|
Action |
Responsibility |
Timeframes |
Measure of success |
|
Scope and cost travel planning to ensure funds available if required |
Manager,
Facilities Management |
By 30 Apr 2008 |
Travel planning process ready to commence and funds available to cover projected costs |
|
Develop Domestic Ground Transport Policy |
Govt3 team |
By 31 Aug 2008 |
Policy document completed in MoE format and published to staff |
|
Develop Domestic and International Air Travel Policy |
Govt3 team |
By 31 Aug 2008 |
Policy document completed in MoE format and published to staff |
|
Determine ongoing data needs and work with suppliers to ensure these are provided |
Govt3 team |
By 31 Aug 2008 |
Data for travel analysis and planning, as well as Govt3 reporting and carbon emissions inventory 2007/08 is available as required |
|
Implement any outstanding actions from Fleet Audit |
Fleet Manager / Govt3 team |
By 31 Mar 2008 |
All appropriate actions implemented |
|
Establish consultative process to determine reduction strategies and implementation methods |
Manager,
Facilities Management |
By 31 Mar 2008 |
Consultation process established, participants identified |
|
Establish technical working party on technology alternatives to travel |
Manager,
Facilities Management |
By 31 Mar 2008 |
Working party established |
Note - the employee commute is not included in the Carbon Neutral Public Service reduction plans as it is outside of the scope of the programme. Agencies will be required to address the employee commute through their Govt3 action plans.
Waste to landfill
Waste to landfill accounts for 2% of the Ministry of Education's greenhouse gas emissions.
Initiatives already undertaken:
- Recycling systems implemented in 2 of the large National Office sites
- Regional and district offices surveyed to identify sites which have already established recycling programmes
- Double-sided printing as default setting on all printers
Actions listed below aim to:
|
Action |
Responsibility |
Timeframes |
Measure of success |
|
Develop written recycling policy for organisation |
Manager,
Facilities Management |
By 31 Mar 2008 |
Policy document completed in MoE format and published to staff |
|
Roll-out of National Office recycling system to all NO sites completed |
Manager,
Facilities Management |
By 30 Apr 2008 |
All NO sites have appropriate recycling systems in place |
|
Develop and roll out toolkit for implementation of recycling in regional and district offices which do not currently have recycling programmes in place |
Manager,
Facilities Management |
1 Apr 2008 |
Toolkit developed and made available to all offices |
|
Develop national waste auditing programme to enable collection of accurate data and target setting |
Manager,
Facilities Management |
By 30 April 2008 |
Representative sites for waste auditing identified, and waste audit plan developed, including frequency of follow-up audits |
|
Establish consultative process to determine further waste reduction strategies and implementation methods |
Manager,
Facilities Management |
By 31 Mar 2008 |
Consultation process established, participants identified |