Hunter
10/03/24
The University of Iowa is moving towards its goal of being coal-free by next year.
The Daily Iowan reports the university has worked to reach a 40 percent renewable energy objective since 2008 that would assist in the transition of the campus from mostly fossil fuels like coal to an environmentally-friendly use of biomass and other renewable energy sources.
The university’s sprawling campus requires roughly the same amount of energy as 42,000 homes. Most of that energy has historically come from coal, whose use has been linked to respiratory and cardiovascular diseases such as asthma and heart attacks, cancer, and neurological disorders.
Coal use has now dropped by 60 percent since the initiative began.
The campus newspaper says Iowa is on track to plant 2,500 acres to produce 22,500 tons of sustainable and renewable fuel for the campus annually. This creates a dedicated energy crop alternative to traditional row cropping which provides a stable income to Iowa’s farmers. One of those crops is a grass called Miscanthus, which is considered carbon neutral. The university is also using oat hulls to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.
In addition to the UI’s plans to be coal-free by 2025, the city of Iowa City is working towards a goal of reducing carbon emissions by 45 percent by 2030, and achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050.