Jeff Stone, Executive DirectorOregon Association of Nurseries

IPPS 2014 Conference1

About the OAN

• Second largest nursery producing state after California

• Ships more plants throughout the US than any other state – Supplies about 15% of all US plants

– An economic engine for Oregon’s economy

• 85% of product goes outside of the state• Engaged Sustainability initiative in 2009 –

including the Climate Friendly Nurseries2

Nurseries – the original green industry

• #1 Acres in production (94,000)• #1 Shade trees• #1 Flowering trees• #1 Coniferous evergreens• #1 Christmas trees• #2 Broadleaf evergreens• #3 Deciduous shrubs• #3 Propagation stock

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Nurseries for a Sustainable World

OAN sustainability initiative•Energy Program: 25% energy intensity reduction goal in 10 years.•CFNP: Best management practices to reduce the industry’s carbon footprint•Education: Empowerment to nurseries of every size to utilize sustainability tools•Nursery Certification: 3rd party certification with the Food Alliance for sustainable practices 4

• Increase nurseries’ understanding of resource-related costs, giving them more information to make informed business decisions

• Proactively reduce operational GHG emissions and resource consumption

• Enable nurseries to be leaders on climate change in Oregon and the nation

Project Goals

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The Climate Friendly Nurseries Project enabled nurseries to:

• Measure and Track Energy and Resource Use and GHG Emissions Over Time – GHG Inventory Tool

• Adopt Best Management Practices to Reduce Costs and GHG Emissions

Reduce Waste, Save Money

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Project Team worked with Ecova to develop a GHG Inventory Tool for the NW Nursery Industry:

• Thirteen nurseries tracked their GHG emissions for at least two years, and nine measured their emissions for all three years of the project (2009-2011).

• Scope 1 & 2 Emissions required, Scope 3 emissions optional.

GHG Inventory Tool

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For the purposes of GHG accounting, GHG emissions are broken into three categories or scopes.

• Scope 1 emissions are those over which a company has direct control via ownership of activities. This includes emissions from all stationary and mobile equipment.

• Scope 2 emissions are those that a company has indirect control over, based on the amount of power they require to run their business. This category includes all purchased electricity, heat or steam.

• Scope 3 includes the emissions from all activities that are purchased from other companies, and are not generally in the company’s direct control but which the company can influence by the goods and services it chooses to purchase. This includes such categories as employee commuting, business travel, fertilizer and pesticide use, and the transport of goods and services.

GHG Inventory Tool

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Average 20% reduction for scope 1 & 2 emissions from 2009 to 2011

Nurseries reduced their GHG emissions by 20%

2009 2010 2011

Scope 1 734 675 587

Scope 2 593 489 478

Total 1,326 1,164 1,064

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• Average total emissions (scopes 1 & 2) decreased each year over the course of the project

• Scope 3 too variable to report on

Nurseries reduced their GHG emissions by 20%

2009 2010 2011

Stationary Combustion 274 235 237

Mobile Combustion 459 440 350

Refrigerant Blends 1 0 0

Purchased Electricity 593 489 478

Total 1,326 1,164 1,064

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• Weather and economic impacts had a very large impact on the industry in 2009-2012, and are difficult to remove from the equation• Can look at per-unit and per acre emissions to

“remove” economic impacts• “Weatherizing” results to reduce weather

impacts

Nurseries reduced their GHG emissions by 20%

Scope Source 2009 2010 % Change 2011 % Change Overall % Change1 Stationary Combustion 274 235 -14% 237 1% -14%1 Mobile Combustion 459 440 -4% 350 -20% -24%1 Refrigerant Blends 1 0 -80% 0 0% -100%2 Purchased Electricity 593 489 -17% 478 -2% -19%

1,326 1,164 -12% 1,064 -9% -20%Total Scope 1 & 2

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Production and revenue better measures of results• Revenue numbers were not complete- many

nurseries chose not to share revenue numbers• Reduced plant prices can have a major impact

on this metric• Production– not useful as an apples-to-apples

comparison of one nursery compared to another, but looking at total yearly results against each other is informative

Nurseries reduced their GHG emissions by 20%

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CFN Recommended Best Management Practices

• Smart Heating and Cooling• Efficient Lighting• Smart Plant Nutrition• Wise Water Use • Reusing Plastics• Reusing Soil

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Best Management Practice Guide

• Low Cost, High Savings Recommendations from Experts

• Incentives and Tools

• Return on Investment Calculations

• Nursery Case Studies

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Climate Friendly Nurseries Best Management Practices

BMP Guide Goals:

• Save Money By Increasing Efficiency

• Reduce Vulnerability to Fluctuating Energy and Input Costs

• Be an Industry Leader and Slow Climate Change

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Climate Friendly Nurseries Best Management Practices

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BMPs IMPLEMENTED

• Lighting retrofits

• Moisture monitoring system installation

• Drip irrigation installation (with a second phase of solar PV installation to cover all irrigation-related energy needs)

• Greenhouse circulation fan upgrades

• Boiler combustion analysis and boiler tuning

• Replacement of damaged greenhouse film

• Installation of double wall IR poly in propagation house

• Switch from forced-air to in-floor/under-bench heating system in greenhouses

• Installation of greenhouse circulation fan controls

• Installation of VFDs in pumping stations

Big issues need serious conversation

• Climate Change, regardless of politics, is happening

• Green industries need to do what they can to embrace sustainable practices and get credit for what they already do. CFNP is one way to start

• Transportation infrastructure needs to utilize trees and shrubs (environmental offsets for new roads)

• Cities and their use of plants will mitigate Urban Heat Island Effect

• With climate change will be water shortages, no need to look beyond California. Water quality and storage are huge issues for the next 20 years. Serious work needs to be done.

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Summary

• Every state, province and country can make an impact on more sustainable practices

• Oregon’s pilot project resulted in a 20% reduction in GHG emissions

• Energy and water efficiency are next horizon efforts

• Climate Change is real. Deal with it

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Find our Best Management Practice Guide and Incentives,

Resources and Tools at:www.climatefriendlynurseries.org

For a copy of the materials relevant to this presentation

Here’s the link: http://www.oan.org/IPPS

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