The University also owns a cogeneration facility, located on West Cameron Avenue, which burns coal and fossil gas to provide steam, chilled water and electricity to 175 campus buildings.
UNC professor in the Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering Jason West said in an email statement to The DTH that the plant burns fossil fuels that contribute to global climate change.
“Switching away from those fuels is not easy for the University to do quickly, but UNC should now be evaluating fossil-free alternatives that would provide power and heat without emitting greenhouse gasses,” West wrote.
University donors
Phaneuf said that donations to UNC, including research funding, are not required to be made publicly available by law. However, he said that he was able to sort through individual tax documents of nonprofit foundations since 2013 to find information surrounding donations.
His research showed that between 2013 and 2023, the University received over $20,049,359 from foundations associated with the fossil fuel industry or with climate change denial. Phaneuf found primary donors to bethe ExxonMobil Foundation, Duke Energy, the Charles Koch Foundation and the National Christian Charitable Foundation.
“These contributions represent transfers from these organizations to UNC-CH; they may be donations to Carolina’s operating budget, funding for research, or something else entirely,” the report stated.
According to Phaneuf, British Petroleum funded the largest number of studies related to the climate and the environment at UNC. He said he was able to find this information through conflict-of-interest statements in research articles, where authors disclose any relationships that could bias their findings.
While West said that industry funding does not necessarily mean that the research serves the industry's interest, Phaneuf said there is a qualitative difference in the results that are produced in industry-funded energy research.
“We still let these fossil fuel companies fund research as to whether or not the burning of oil and gas, which is directly what they profit from, is contributing to the climate crisis,” Phaneuf said. “And well, I found that particularly baffling.”
Ties to fossil fuel industry
According to a UNC Board of Governors member report, the Kenan Flagler Energy Center Advisory Board's public biography pages, and a Media Relations statement, three members of the boards have worked in fossil fuel or fossil fuel-adjacent industries. Two past members have also been affiliated with fossil fuel.
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"Bill Currens works at Duke Energy, a utility which generates electricity from a mix of sources, including not only fossil fuels but also renewables and nuclear," Media Relations wrote. "The company has extensive plans to de-carbonize to Net Zero over the next several decades."
The email statement also read that Vikas Bharathwaaj works for Morgan Stanley, which covers the oil and gas industry, and advisory board members Steve Newby and Paul Holshouser are executives at renewable energy firms.
“We have people who have direct ties to Exxon, to Shell, on our University’s boards, making these decisions directly related to climate,” Phaneuf said. “I find that to be a direct conflict of interest.”
Media Relations wrote that the University collaborates with the School of Environment Sciences and Engineering and the Institute for Sustainability to provide panels annually for the Clean Tech Summit.
"We take all energy sectors seriously, including renewables — where we have courses in the business of renewable energy and renewables project development and financing," Media Relations wrote.
Recommended actions
The report outlines three recommended measures to be taken by the University. The first two involve prohibiting funding and donations to fossil fuel companies, as well as completely divesting from the fossil fuel industry.
Additionally, the report recommends requiring all retirement plan vendors to offer fossil-free retirement plan options.
Currently, UNC contributes to the Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America to secure pensions for their faculty and staff. However, the report states that TIAA maintains more than $78 billion in fossil fuel assets, according to the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis.
“Divestment from fossil fuel companies in UNC's endowment and retirement plans can be an important way that our University can encourage movement toward a greener future,” West said in his email statement. “Our money should be invested in ways that reflect our values.”
Media Relations wrote that UNC has "extensive educational and research activities focused on understanding and mitigating climate change," and stated that UNC has seven departments across five colleges and schools with a focus on climate.
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