The Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) has released its fourth annual Sustainability Report, which documents agency progress toward sustainability and climate goals.
“Transportation is the primary source of carbon pollution in Minnesota and the U.S. and MnDOT is committed to address climate impacts and to work with communities throughout the state to develop a sustainable transportation system of the future,” Tim Sexton, assistant commissioner and chief sustainability director, said. “The agency has a long-demonstrated history of leadership and innovation that we can leverage to benefit the economy and environment of Minnesota.”
The analysis outlines efforts to reduce energy consumption per square foot by 17 percent between 2008 and 2019; lead a competitive request for proposal for community solar garden subscriptions that will save MnDOT more than $1.5 million and account for almost 25 percent of total agency electricity use; and increase the number of agency electric vehicles from four to 29. It also seeks to exceed MnDOT’s goal in the 2018-2019 winter season for reducing salt usage.
Meanwhile, the agency reported some setbacks. Among them, they reported that carbon pollution from transportation continued to increase between 2018 and 2019. Also, MnDOT used more fuel in its fleet vehicles in 2019, mostly in plow trucks to manage snow and ice. In addition, the agency is seeing a trend towards using less native seeding on projects in recent years.