Trees Spatial Distribution and Energy Awareness to Reduce Net CO2 Emission at Universitas Negeri Semarang Campus, Indonesia

Abstract

Energy conservation will be achieved if there is a correlation between human actions in managing energy use and the absorption of emissions, which in this case refers only to CO₂. This correlation will create a comfortable environment. The aims of this study were to: analyze energy consumption in Universitas Negeri Semarang (UNNES) campus, Indonesia, analyze the distribution of trees related to the sequestration of emissions; and understand the awareness of the users of energy in the UNNES campus. Trees were analyzed for their distribution patterns to assess differences in emission absorption between areas with the highest and lowest tree concentrations. Energy consumption to analyze the different human activity levels. The ability to sequester CO₂ emissions was estimated by identifying the spatial distribution of trees.  Spatial pattern analysis was employed to establish the human responses to energy management. Although 67% of the UNNES campus comprised of green areas, these cannot absorb the total emissions of 7,862 t yr^-1, with 1,573 t yr^-1 unabsorbed. The green areas extent is unrelated to the number of trees. Trees over 25 cm in diameter have a wide coverage canopy. Still, not all green area distribution patterns were in the form of shade trees, so the emission absorption function is low. Based on the calculations, the 10,264 trees in UNNES can only absorb about 40% of campus activity emissions.

Keywords: emission absorption, energy consumption, awareness of planting trees, spatial distribution, reduce emission