- While UCSF has committed to fully electrifying all new buildings going forward, nearly all of UCSF’s existing buildings currently rely on legacy fossil fuel infrastructure for energy and heat, primarily from the Parnassus cogeneration plant.
- The UCSF Sustainability Office reports that 58% of UCSF’s emissions currently come from burning fracked methane.
- UCSF currently has no plans to “get off the gas” by electrifying its existing campus buildings.
- UCSF could also build new local renewable energy generation and battery storage systems to provide on-site microgrid backups in case of outages.
- Will UCSF massively slash its contribution to climate change by investing in plans to electrify all existing structures?
Endorsements
” ‘Getting Off the Gas’ is the right choice for UCSF, and for planet earth! Continuing to use fracked gas to generate heat and electricity is not consistent with our goals of reducing health disparities or Advancing Health Worldwide.”
TOM NEWMAN – Professor Emeritus of Epidemiology & Biostatistics and Pediatrics. Website.
“UCSF is a global leader in human health. Every single day, our clinicians treat patients whose illnesses stem from the use of fossil fuels. One of the most critical and urgent actions we can do for human health is to reduce UC’s contribution to these illnesses. Switching away from carbon fuel will promote mental health, physical health, and social equity. We cannot think of a more important impact that the UC system can have on public health, while serving as an examplar to other universities and medical systems globally. We urge UC to “get off the gas” now!”
UCSF CLIMATE CRISIS AND MENTAL HEALTH TASK FORCE