Net zero

Our target to deliver net zero by 2030 includes emissions associated with the energy we use across our estate (scope 1 and 2 emissions), as well as business travel and commuting.

Our wider objective is to include the emissions associated with our supply chain (scope 3 emissions) as part of our longer-term plan to achieve zero direct emissions by 2050.

This section focuses primarily on efforts to reduce emissions from our estate, along with initial steps to better understand our supply chain emissions. Our efforts to reduce emissions from travel is covered within the sustainable travel principle.

Delivering net zero across our estate

Our pathway to achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 is a reduction in the energy we use, coupled with the decarbonisation of the energy we do use.

To do this we need to make changes to our buildings and infrastructure so that they use less energy. We also need to ensure that the energy we use comes from renewable sources.

Progress made in 2022/23

Over the past 18 months, we have undertaken detailed feasibility studies on our 21 highest emitting buildings and their supporting infrastructure to inform the most effective means of achieving net zero in the current financial, political and environmental context. Using these, we have developed a Net Zero Delivery Plan which outlines how we will do this.

Net Zero Delivery Plan

The Net Zero Delivery Plan takes the underlying principles from the Pathway to Net Zero, signed off in 2021, and turns the ambition into a practical, deliverable plan for our estate.

The plan, which was approved by the University Council in October 2023, sets out four key project areas.

1. Investing in new renewable energy generation

Renewable energy generation is a high priority. Whilst simply switching to a renewable tariff would be easy and quick, we believe it is important that we take responsibility for our own energy and contribute to the wider UK energy transition.  

Given the limitations on generating renewable energy on campus, we are investing in new to ground off-site renewable energy generation projects which will feed electricity into the national grid. 

This will initially match our current campus electricity usage, saving nearly 2,000 tonnes of CO2e (carbon dioxide equivalent) each year, and as our electricity usage increases, we’ll invest in additional renewable energy projects to match this.

Progress made in 2022/23

We have developed our requirements for this investment and are in the process of developing a tender submission for new to earth renewable energy projects.

2. Upgrading the Worsley Building with a new heat recovery system and solar panels

As the home of the medical school, dentistry, and the Leeds Teaching Hospital Trust, full fresh air ventilation is critical in the Worsley Building. 

We plan to install a new heat recovery ventilation system which will save over 1,000 tonnes of CO2e each year and is one of the most effective ways to reduce emissions in this high energy use building. 

Heat recovery ventilation systems work by using the warm air being extracted from the building to help heat the fresh air coming in, reducing the need for the heating systems to keep the building at the right temperature. 

We will also be installing solar panels on the Worsley Building which will help support the high energy needs and reduce the amount of energy needed from the national grid.

3. Installing a new localised energy centre for the Engineering cluster 

This cluster of buildings, which includes the Mechanical Engineering Building and Henry Price Halls of Residence, is the furthest group of buildings from our steam heating network. This means that energy is lost enroute to this cluster. 

By installing a new local energy centre to provide all the heating needs for the buildings it serves, we can almost fully decarbonise the heating systems within these buildings.  

Air source heat pumps will be a key part of the solution for this cluster. However, research is underway to understand whether geothermal heat can be used alongside these to provide a safe, efficient, sustainable solution for the Engineering cluster.

This work is part of our Living Lab programme and is linked to our teaching and research facilities in GeoSolutions Leeds. It will test a clean energy model that could be used elsewhere on campus and for other buildings in the wider Leeds city region.  

To start, we will need a backup gas boiler system to make sure we have enough energy at peak times, but an energy management strategy will work to limit and if possible, avoid the need for this.

4. Securing an increased electrical supply to campus

To achieve our net zero target, we will need to decarbonise our existing heating network, and this will require a larger electricity supply to campus from the Northern Power Grid.  Work to secure this supply is underway and will involve extending the electrical substation we have on campus to receive the electricity from the grid.  

An increased electrical supply will allow us to move our heating system away from fossil fuels, which will deliver large scale and cost-efficient emissions reductions and go a long way to delivering our net zero target. 

This is a significant project which is complicated by our sharing elements of the heating network with Leeds Teaching Hospitals Trust (LTHT). Careful co-ordination with LTHT is needed, and a new group is being created to drive this work forward.

Delivery plan phases

This delivery plan is split into three phases, underpinned by enabling works that will take place over a decade.

Phase 1

Phase 1 will focus predominantly on interventions to the physical estate. These will deliver a 22% reduction in estate-based emissions but will require 39% of the total funding. Projects within Phase 1 are not dependent upon delivery in the following phases.

Phase 2

Phase 2 will propose the decarbonisation of the University’s steam heating network. This project is the most cost-effective proposition in the Net Zero Programme, delivering 56% of the University’s carbon reductions with 9% of the funding.

Phase 3

Phase 3 will deliver the outstanding 22% of emissions reductions with the remaining 30% of funding. We will use what has been learnt from Phase 1 to inform future projects, including consolidation of the campus enabled by behavioural change. This phase will also deliver academically verified carbon offsets for any remaining emissions.

Enabling works

These are critical to the delivery of all three phases of the Net Zero Delivery Plan. Whilst the works do not directly reduce emissions, they enable the programme delivery to 2030.

The works include funding to protect and future-proof the University’s electricity supply, the cost to progress detailed design for Phases 1 to 3, and the staffing required to manage and deliver the Net Zero programme to the end of the decade.

Alongside these physical changes, the enabling works will fund ongoing smaller projects including living lab and communications with the potential to create momentum for behavioural change.

The planned costs for each phase are outlined in the following table.

Table of planned costs and additional emissions reduction

Impact on emissions from our estate

As part of the Delivery Plan, we have modelled the impact on our emissions through to 2030.

This shows that we are on track to deliver our target of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.

However, despite bringing forward initiatives such as investing in renewable energy generation, significant reductions start to be delivered later in this decade than the original plan. This delay is due to the complexity of the electrification of heating and the need for more detailed design for the Phase 1 projects.

Total projected estate-based emissions

Impact of phase 1 projects

The following tables show how much each project is planned to reduce our total estate-based emissions.

Offsite renewables part 1

Grid decarbonisation

Building level interventions

Impact of phase 2 projects

The following tables show how much each project is planned to reduce our total estate-based emissions.

Electrification of steam network

Offsite renewables part 2

Phase 3 projects to reduce emissions

The following tables show how much each project is planned to reduce our total estate-based emissions.

Disposals and estate rationalisation

Other phase 3 projects (to be determined)

Progress made in 2022/23

LED lighting installation programme

We have successfully installed LED lighting in all University residences.

Climate resilience

We have completed a climate change risk assessment and resilience review to assess the preparedness of the University campus to weather disruption caused by climate change. A Climate Resilience Board has been mobilised to help deliver its recommendations.

Re-baselining farm emissions

As part of planned activities, we undertook a detailed review of the University’s agricultural emissions.

This review reduced the estimated annual emissions from just under 7,800 tonnes of CO2e per annum to just over 1,400 tonnes CO2e per annum.

Although this reduction is not due to any emissions-reducing activity, it does help us prioritise future projects to ensure investments are targeted to the most efficient emissions reductions.

Gair Wood

We have completed the planting of 60,000 trees in Gair Wood, one of the most significant woodland development schemes in the North of England.

The project was predominantly designed as a living lab project for staff and students, providing a new site for research and teaching.

As the woodland grows, particularly from 2030 onwards, the trees will also remove carbon from the atmosphere.

Plans for 2024

We will begin to deliver our Net Zero Delivery Plan, which includes the following work.

On-site and off-site renewable energy generation

We intend to complete the installation of solar photovoltaics (solar panels) on the Worsley Building in 2024.

We plan to launch a tender for significant investment in off-site renewable energy generation to match our current electricity requirements with decarbonised energy.

Geothermal energy

Results from the exploratory drilling are due in summer 2024 and will help inform our plans to provide low carbon heating for the Engineering Cluster as well as offering opportunities to support teaching, research, and the decarbonisation of the wider region.

Completion of design for Engineering Cluster and Worsley Building projects

We plan to complete detailed designs for the construction of a localised energy centre to power the Engineering Cluster and for upgrades to the Worsley Building.

We’re aiming to start construction on these projects in 2025 which will save a combined 2,000 tonnes of CO2e per year.

Additional electricity capacity

We plan to make a formal request to Northern Powergrid for additional electricity capacity in 2024 and for the work to commence by the end of the year.

Brownlee Centre decarbonisation

We plan to replace the existing oil-powered heating system at the Brownlee Centre with an air source heat pump.

Once we can switch to renewable energy, this will be the University’s first net zero site.

Living labs

We will develop criteria and plans for the allocation of Living Lab funding following the approval of £1m of funding for Living Lab projects to support Net Zero.

Communications and engagement

Communications and engagement activity around delivering net zero is focused on sharing our plans and progress with our University community, alongside supporting areas where staff and students can help us to reach our net zero target.

As the programme develops, it will become more important to include communications designed to share what we learn not only with our community but also with the wider higher education sector, city region, and other organisations working towards net zero targets.

Sharing our Net Zero Delivery Plan with our community has been the priority campaign for communications and engagement this year.

Progress made in 2022/23

We launched the Net Zero Delivery Plan to our student and staff community using a range of communication channels and tools:

• Publication of a Spotlight summary of the key projects
• Development of an infographic to introduce the key workstreams
• Updated content across the Climate Plan SharePoint Hub and the Sustainability Service website, and promotion via staff and student emails
• Social media promotion across the Sustainability Service, Estates and University of Leeds social channels
• Delivery of a hybrid interactive discussion event hosted by Director of Campus Innovation and Development, Ann Allen, which took place on Monday 4 December

The feedback from this event is being used to develop our approach to future events, which will include smaller round table events, engagement activities, and increasingly focus on distinct audiences for whom the key topics have more direct relevance.

For example, engagement activities focused on the Worsley building and Engineering Cluster where work is expected to have local impact.

Plans for 2024

Building on the publication of our Net Zero Delivery Plan, we will deliver focused communications and engagement around key programmes of work. This has started driving awareness of the Sustainable Labs programme in January 2024, and engagement around the initial test drilling for geothermal heat in spring 2024.

Communications working groups are being convened to design and deliver communications and engagement activity covering different stakeholder audiences. This ranges from managing potential disruption concerns with local building users through to amplifying our work through research and the Sustainable Curriculum programme.

Activities will include digital communications and face to face engagement events with opportunities for discussion and questions, as well as opportunities for our staff and students to contribute to decision making.

Campaign areas will include the wider programmes of work within the net zero programme, for example energy efficiency initiatives, expanding the Sustainable Labs programme, and supporting the Living Lab programme.

Progress will continue to be reported quarterly and major updates will be shared with our wider University community.

Addressing supply chain (scope 3) emissions

Progress made in 2022/23

Improving the measurement of supply chain emissions is a priority area of work.

Having assessed several options, we have opted to pilot a net zero carbon supplier tool from Net Positive. This pilot will last 12 months and reduce the estimation of conversion factors, allowing suppliers to provide enhanced figures based on their actual inputs, processes and operations. This will give us better data to inform further plans to reduce scope 3 emissions.

Alongside this we have introduced mandatory questions on net zero and the introduction of sustainable action plans within supplier evaluation.

Despite an increased post-covid campus presence, this work has contributed to reducing our overall estimated supply chain emissions by 11.6% year on year.

Plans for 2024

We will begin our year-long pilot of the Net Positive supplier tool. This will include requesting specific information from suppliers that will allow us to better track supply chain emissions.

We will work collaboratively with the Net Zero Reporting Group to adopt a hybrid approach which incorporates more reliable supplier data. This will help us to capture supplier action and net zero initiatives in our reporting, to represent the net zero activity more accurately in our supply chain.

Ongoing work

• Enhancing the capability of our Procurement team and end users, through the provision of learning opportunities and a sustainable tendering toolkit.
• Embedding sustainable decision making across all purchasing categories through implementation of the category plans we set out for 2023/24.
• Improving our approach to evaluating supplier sustainability and performance against commitments during the lifetime of our contracts.
• Working closely with internal stakeholders across the University to shape our procurement requirements to reduce carbon and consider a breadth of environmental, social and governance issues when shaping our procurement strategies.

Emissions data

We have moved to the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) reporting protocol to offer a clearer breakdown of our emissions and to align our reporting with other organisations, including the UK Government.

The emissions from our estate have decreased by 0.2% in 2022/23 compared to the previous year. Our delivery plan does not forecast significant emissions reductions until 2025, so this is to be expected. However, in 2024 we will renew our focus on work which will deliver earlier and immediate emissions reductions, alongside the longer-term planning to achieve net zero by 2030.

Scope 1 emissions

Scope 2 emissions