Case study for evaluating campus sustainability: nitrogen balance for the University of Minnesota

Abstract

American ecologists recently began to address the ecology of cities. Concurrently, higher education institutions have developed sustainability education programs and instituted sustainability policies and projects. This paper draws together these two disparate areas by examining the nitrogen (N) budget of the Twin Cities campus of the University of Minnesota. We addressed the question: what were the annual inputs, outputs and internal cycles of N on the University of Minnesota Twin Cities campus? We found that 508 Mg N yr-1 were brought into the campus and 494 Mg N yr-1 were emitted from the University of Minnesota campus. The largest N inputs were abiotic fixation (conversion of N 2 to NO x by combustion) and food for humans and animals. The largest N output was NO x , followed by wastewater. Our results expand the understanding of the ecology of institutions within an urban area and provide an opportunity for improving urban ecology education and environmental policy at educational institutions.

Contrasting nitrogen and phosphorus budgets in urban watersheds and implications for managing urban water pollution

“…We estimated BNF by herbaceous legumes from estimates of legume cover and published estimates of BNF of Trifolium repens (white clover) (63). Net inputs of N from crop BNF inputs and agricultural animal manure were included for the University of Minnesota St. Paul Campus Agricultural Experiment Station (in the SAP watershed) based on published values and interviews with the station manager (64). P inputs from rock weathering were estimated from published values for local soil parent materials (65).…”

“…We estimated annual storm drain nutrient export in baseflow and stormwater runoff using data from the CRWD (61) following Janke et al (37). Crop nutrient exports from the University of Minnesota St. Paul Campus Agricultural Experiment Station were from published values (64). Nutrients exported in yard waste (leaf litter and grass clippings) were estimated from a previous study in the region (19,27); all yard waste taken to county collection sites is exported from the watersheds.…”

Anthropogenic modification of the nitrogen cycling within the Greater Hangzhou Area system, China

“…Data used in this analysis were primarily taken from the 1980 and 2004 data, while the mean of the most recent three years was calculated if the 1980 and 2004 data were unavailable and used as an estimate of the 1980 and 2004 data. Data were calculated in a bottom-up method used by Baker et al (2001) and Savanick et al (2007) for most of the N flux within the GHA, e.g., the amount of N input from synthetic fertilizers applied to urban lawns was calculated by the total lawn area multiplied by the recommended fertilizer range of fertilization rates. The remaining N flux components within the GHA were calculated using the top-down method, e.g., the entire GHA fossil fuel consumption quantity was acquired by scaling down the national consumption quantity.…”

“…output) of N and how N is transferred by anthropogenic activity. A similar N mass balance approach as previously reported by Baker et al (2001), Kaye et al (2006), and Savanick et al (2007) was used.…”

Benchmarking presidents’ compensations in institutions of higher education relative to sustainability and other institutional practices

“…IHEs have begun to include sustainable design for new buildings, environmental audits, sustainable development plans, and adopting policies on conserving our environment (Savanick, Baker, & Perry, 2007). Students that are studying sustainability in their classes are going to be the future leaders in the organizations they will work for, and in the communities they will live.…”