No . 132 The Trusty Servant energy and so are typically dominated by gas and electricity usage . If you have a new building then it is feasible to hit that net-zero target impressively quickly . But , like much of the country , the College has old and sometimes historic housing stock that is often poorly insulated . We have tackled some of the challenges inherent in this with the use of a biomass boiler that heats Flint Court and College . This has been successful and uses ( roughly ) the same amount of pellets as we produce in wood chip from our forestry in Hampshire . The perception of biomass has changed since this was installed , however , and we are investigating issues surrounding pellet manufacture before considering expanding this provision to other areas of the school . The obvious other route would be to electrify heating across the rest of campus , but the historic nature of the buildings mean that they are poorly adapted to heat pumps . Resolution of that issue via considerate improvement of the fabric of the buildings may not be enough , as the electricity network around the College is also antiquated and has struggled even with our present requirements in recent years . Significant upgrades from SSE are required before electrified heating and electric-vehicle charging can be widely rolled out .
Even if we can crack our Scope 1 and 2 emissions , it is likely that there will soon be an obligation to include Scope 3 emissions in any net-zero pledge . These are emissions related to a company that occur at arm ’ s length but that are inherently link to it , for instance emissions associated with purchased goods and services or employee-commuting . Quantification of Scope 3 emissions is always difficult and unknowns exist in many areas of ours , particularly with regard to our rural holdings . Nobody really knows whether any of the College ’ s land is a carbon source or sink . This is particularly true of the
lowland peat owned by the College in Cambridgeshire : we await the outcome of the ongoing national Survey of Lowland Peat by the Centre of Ecology and Hydrology . Regardless of the outcome it will be difficult to move on any issues until DEFRA finalises the terms of the new agricultural-subsidy schemes . They may yet decide that this prime agricultural land is too valuable to the nation to consider any near-term changes in management . This situation is not unique within our Scope 3 emissions . Whilst we are not powerless to enact change , the complexity of our operation means that we are tied to the national policy environment to a greater extent than smaller schools .
And underpinning all of this are the challenges related to the additionality of boarding . The boarding house is an extra presence in the boys ’ lives , not a replacement : family homes and cars still exist during term . Carbon accounting is tricky but this means that emissions associated with our operation are particularly important .
Thankfully ESAG has made early wins which provide helpful momentum . We have switched to a renewable supply of electricity . The Investment Committee have set an ambitious target for modifying our approach to our financial assets , with targets for passive , engagement and impact-based investments . We have made a commitment to lower the carbon intensity of trips and business travel by over 70 %. A pupilled initiative on tree planting in the vicinity of the College has just received a green light . Our existing boarding houses are being upgraded with building-management systems to help reduce their gas use and new boarding houses will be built to extremely high environmental standards with a focus on embodied carbon as well as insulation . We are also examining how to maximise the benefits from the nitrate offsets for those boarding houses ( areas of land removed from intensive agriculture ). Through focusing on wildlife connectivity , we hope to increase public amenity for those in Winchester and maximise biodiversity net-gain . The possibility of once again seeing Duke of Burgundy butterflies fluttering between Deacon Hill and Twyford Down is tantalising .
While we may be faced with a complicated and challenging route to net-zero , our situation is not unique and the decade ahead remains essential . It has been heartening to see what has been possible in a short period of time and the level to which the pupil body has engaged in this . I remain stubbornly optimistic that the change required is achievable because of the dynamism and capability of our community . If on reading this you feel moved to assist , please do reach out . There is room for additional voices in the transition to a net-zero future so whether you can offer technical expertise , welcome support or necessary pressure , please do reach out and get involved .
Dr Clayton can be contacted via aic @ wincoll . ac . uk .
VBk pupils learning about nature-based solutions to climate change on this year ’ s Geography trip to Cornwall
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