Ohio University is required by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to transition from burning coal to burning natural gas by the end of 2015, we reported Thursday.
Although burning natural gas does not cause as many harmful emissions as burning coal does, it might be more harmful to the environment during the extraction process, Scott Miller, director of Energy and Environmental Programs at OU told a Post reporter.
Replacing coal with natural gas will lead to a decrease in the amount of carbon waste the university emits, which is obviously a step in the right direction.
We ask, however, that OU expedites its plan to remove harmful fossil fuels such as coal and natural gas from its equation.
Back in 2007, President Roderick McDavis signed the American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment, making OU the first four-year public university in Ohio to sign. The school’s current Climate Action Plan calls for a soft goal of 25 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by fall of 2032 and for the university to reach climate neutrality — the point where no greenhouse gasses are emitted by OU — by fall of 2075.
That’s too far in the future for anyone in the current administration to ever have to be held accountable to, but that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be looking ahead.
The transition from coal to natural gas is a baby step in the right direction. We’d love to see more initiatives regarding renewable energy — solar or wind power — like our counterparts at other Ohio public universities, such as the University of Toledo, whose green efforts have been extensive.
Editorials represent the majority opinion of The Post’s executive editors.
