Students in a Department of Earth Sciences class during fall term turned their attention to a prominent spot on campus to assess its impact on global warming.
The undergraduates measured carbon dioxide emissions from the lawn of the President’s House as part of an independent study project—research supported by President Sian Leah Beilock.
The project aligns with the Dartmouth Climate Collaborative, which President Beilock launched this spring to invest more than $500 million in climate-related capital improvements. One goal of the initiative is to find innovative ways of using the campus as a lab.
Professor of Earth Sciences Carl Renshaw, who taught the EARS 18: Environmental Earth Sciences class, said the students found that the lawn emits carbon at a higher rate than other sites they sampled around campus, which included a forest, a meadow, and a field at the Organic Farm.
That is “likely due to the use of fertilizer to maintain the lawn’s lush appearance, which also supports a high population of soil microbes actively respiring carbon dioxide,” Renshaw said.
Students recommended reducing the amount of fertilizer used on the lawn, and they also suggested looking at transforming it into a “microbial fuel cell—a system that generates electricity by harnessing the metabolic activity of microorganisms” and could potentially power soil moisture sensors to optimize how and when the lawn is irrigated, Renshaw said.
Campus Services is considering the proposals.
In October, Beilock joined volunteers in planting a wildflower garden on part of the front lawn of the President’s House to help create habitats for pollinators and improve sustainability.
Renshaw this winter and spring will also be co-teaching an undergraduate course that will partner students with local community organizations to address real-world challenges in building climate resilience as part of the Climate Futures Initiative.