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Old Main building on the UA campus.

The UA’s emissions have decreased by 12.8% since 2015. Officials say a new plan will take sustainability to the next level. (Photo: Ron Medvescek / Arizona Daily Star)

UA, TEP Initiate Plan to Power Campus With Clean Energy

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UA, TEP Initiate Plan to Power Campus With Clean Energy

Sept. 4, 2019
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The UA's emissions have decreased in recent years, but this industry partnership will take sustainability efforts on campus to the next level.

The University of Arizona has partnered with Tucson Electric Power for the purchase of solar and wind power, an agreement that will offset a large portion of campus greenhouse gas emissions by the end of 2020.

If the agreement is approved by the Arizona Corporation Commission, the UA will become the largest research university in the country to have a plan to replace the entirety of its “scope two” emissions with green energy. Scope two emissions are greenhouse gases that result from the generation of electricity, heat or steam purchased from a utility provider.

The UA’s utility operations made up more than 70% of its emissions in 2017, 31.6% from electricity and 40% from gas and propane, according to the university’s Greenhouse Gas Emissions Report.

The university’s overall emissions have decreased by 12.8% since 2015, but officials say this agreement will take sustainability efforts on campus to the next level.

“We made a commitment to become a more sustainable campus, and now we have in place a system that will make a significant impact in just two years,” said University of Arizona President Robert C. Robbins in a statement.

Through the development of two new renewable energy projects, the Wilmot Energy Center and the Oso Grande Wind Project, TEP will provide the university with affordable access to solar and wind energy for 20 years.

“We’re proud to support the ambitious renewable energy goals of President Robbins and the University of Arizona, which are consistent with our own aspirations,” said TEP President and CEO David G. Hutchens, who is also a UA aerospace engineering alumnus. “We’re working together with our customers to build a sustainable energy future for our community.”