Northwest Indian College Carbon Footprint: Baseline Data for Raising Consciousness Among Indians

Northwest tribes are based on a culture of harvest from the sea. Salmon are the center of religious ceremonies, economics, and the physical health of tribes. Northwest tribes additionally depend upon shellfish harvests. Greenhouse gases are an issue for Northwest tribal life for a number of reasons. Rising levels of greenhouse gases lead to ocean acidification which can affect calcium levels in the sea. As important, some of these organisms are part of the diet of salmon, the most significant of species to Northwest tribes. In this study, we used the Clean Air Cool Planets Green House Gas (GHG) Inventory Calculator (Carbon Calculator) to determine the amount of greenhouse gas produced by Northwest Indian College’s Lummi Campus. Data were taken for two different years, from July 2009 to June 2010 and from July 2010 to June 2011. The GHG calculator takes input data from five major areas: electricity, garbage, air travel, propane gas and travel of supplies, e.g. paper. Our effort to document the NWIC Lummi Campus carbon footprint is part of a larger effort toward greater sustainability including green-buildings, recycling and composting. Our eventual hope is to use the data we gather to help move the college toward becoming an official part of the American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment. This should help students become more conscious of carbon footprints in a way that will allow them to pass on their knowledge to others, including their families and their tribes.