Reducing Carbon Footprint

My name is Gillian and I am a Penn State student.  This semester, I took a geography course about sustainability.  Through this course, I have become more aware of how individuals and groups of people can influence the environment.  I learned how members of a community can take actions to protect the environment and contribute to a better quality of life.  In this class, I worked on a group project with three of my classmates.  The topic of our project was “Reducing Carbon Footprint.”  We researched ways to improve a town’s ecological footprint and reduce carbon emissions.  We found that a viable option for reducing pollutants and preserving resources is to use rooftops to create better sustainability practices in towns.  Our project focused on building green roofs and putting in solar panels to increase green energy.  Through researching the efficiency and viability of green roofs and solar panels and conducting a survey that included Pennsylvania State University students and State College residents, we developed a policy recommendation for State College.  I believe that the same policy recommendation could be applied to my hometown of Collegeville.  Although our project provided a policy recommendation for State College, green roof technologies and solar panels would benefit any town interested in improving sustainability.  I would love to see residents of Collegeville support the development of green buildings and solar panels to help contribute to environmental health.

Our research showed us that initial investments in green roofs and solar panels are followed by energy savings.  Initial investments do present concerns, as the processes that go into turning an ordinary roof into a green one, or covering it with solar panels, are very costly.  Nonetheless, it is important for residents to understand that these technologies will pay for themselves overtime.  In our research, we considered big cities such as New York and Toronto that have started to implement green roof technologies.  Green roofs purify the air, work to collect excess runoff, and in some cases, grow crops for consumption.  As these technologies have thrived in cities with millions of people, they are certainly practical for towns like State College and Collegeville.  Green roofs absorb less heat and lead to energy savings, as air conditioning is no longer as much of a necessity.  These roofs experience a life-span about three times longer than a standard roof.  Solar panels are also essential for helping cities improve their sustainable practices and planning.  Solar panels absorb sunlight and convert it into energy for the building.  They drastically reduce energy and electric costs and allow for a complete payback of installation costs (and then some). Solar panels reduce long run costs for residents and business owners.

Through our survey, we found that the majority of residents believe that the initial investments for green roofs and solar panels are worthwhile, as they lead to long run sustainability benefits.  Our survey also showed us that the majority of residents would support the development of green roofs and solar panels on campus and consider using these technologies on their homes.  We wanted to include the voices of the residents in our project and give them some say in how a policy should be developed in the town.  Our recommendations for State College were for the betterment of the community and its residents.  We recommended that the town should implement a policy that encourages residents and business owners to build green roofs and solar panels.  I would like to see Collegeville provide incentives for members of the community to embrace these technologies as well.  I would also recommend that Collegeville makes the effort to inform residents about the efficiency of green roofs and solar panels to bring awareness to the benefits of these technologies.  Not only would these efforts to improve sustainability benefit the environment and residents by reducing the town’s carbon footprint and preserving resources, but they would also benefit the residents by helping them save money on energy costs in the long run.