Carbon footprint of the Rumiñahui municipal palace in Andean Ecuador during 2019 and 2020: COVID effects and mitigation measures

Although the ranking of Ecuadorians per capita emissions is lower than global average, Ecuador´s institutions are committed to climate change mitigation considering the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities. The aim of the current study has been to determine the carbon footprint in the main building of the Municipal Government of Rumiñahui (GADMUR) in Central Ecuador during 2019 and 2020, as well as identifying the effects related to the COVID pandemic, in order to ultimately propose emissions mitigation measures. Subsequently, a quantitative methodology has been used, based on a bibliographic and documentary review, interviews and a survey conducted to a sample of 172 GADMUR employees. Among the results, it was obtained that in 2019, the GADMUR emitted a total of 1767.67 t eq-CO2 equivalent to the atmosphere, while in 2020 a significant reduction in emissions was recorded with a total of 1213.71 t eq-CO2. Prior to the pandemic, 21% of workers traveled on foot, 20% by bus and 46% in their own petrol cars, while 54% of workers traveled alone, contributing more to emissions per capita. During the pandemic, the mobility choices varied with more percentage of employees (32%) walking to the office, less (10%) travelling by bus and similar (43%) in their own petrol cars. Furthermore, the percentage of workers travelling unaccompanied in their own cars increased to 64%. Overall, the mobility with private vehicles of employees and that of GADMUR were the main emitters of greenhouse gases in the institution. The prioritized measures to reduce emissions were (a) renew vehicles older than 30 and 20 years within the fleet of GADMUR; (b) implement shared transportation routes for employees, considering the info obtained from the maps, through the development of an app and non-monetary incentives.