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“We didn’t go up, and that was good.”
Photo Credit: Amherst-Pelham Regional School District
Amherst, Massachusetts, cut its greenhouse gas pollution by nearly 13% below 2016 levels in fiscal year 2025, marking progress even as the town fell short of its first major climate benchmark.
As the Daily Hampshire Gazette reported, that first goal called for a 25% cut by 2025, meaning the town has achieved roughly half of the reduction it had planned for 2025.
A new greenhouse gas inventory shows Amherst’s total community emissions are 12.9% lower than they were in 2016. Emissions from municipal operations declined more sharply, coming in 17% below that baseline.
The town’s reduction timetable comes from its Climate Action, Adaptation and Resilience Plan, which the Town Council approved in November 2019. That plan set goals of 25% below 2016 emissions by 2025, 50% below by 2030, and carbon neutrality by 2050.
Officials still described the new numbers as evidence that Amherst is moving in the right direction. 
“We didn’t go up, and that was good,” Amherst sustainability director Stephanie Ciccarello said.
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She also noted the town is doing better than many comparable Massachusetts communities.
That view was also shared by James Ordway, the University of New Hampshire master’s student who prepared the report.
“Thirteen percent is lower than what we hoped for, but at least it’s going down, and not everyone’s going down,” he said.
Town government represents less than 2% of Amherst’s total emissions, but municipal emissions still dropped from 4,947 U.S. tons (4,488 metric tons) of carbon dioxide equivalent in fiscal year 2016 to 4,114 U.S. tons (3,732 metric tons) by fiscal year 2025.
Because the municipal share is so small, most community emissions come from households, vehicles, and major institutions such as the University of Massachusetts, Amherst College, and Hampshire College. UMass alone produces about as much pollution as all other community emissions combined, making its decisions especially significant for Amherst’s totals.
Stationary energy use in town buildings makes up the biggest portion of municipal emissions. Ordway said those accounts represent 75% of the municipal ledger, and the report also flagged a 70% rise in pumping station emissions without identifying a cause.
The inventory also pointed to ways for local programs to reduce both pollution and utility bills,  including building upgrades, electrification, and home efficiency measures.
Several projects already in progress could improve Amherst’s results in future inventories. Wildwood and Fort River, two of the town’s biggest-polluting school buildings, are being replaced by Amethyst Brook, a new net-zero elementary school, and the renovated and expanded Jones Library is expected to open in 2027 with lower energy use.
The transportation side of municipal operations also showed gains, with emissions down 22.3%. Fire Department emissions increased because of higher call volume and changes in dispatch policy, while the use of hybrid vehicles also affected the totals.
Institutions outside town government will be central to Amherst’s next phase as well. UMass and Amherst College are both working on geothermal projects, but local committee members remain concerned that UMass is not moving away from its central heating plant for existing buildings.
Amherst’s interim climate milestone is expected in 2028, but local officials said the current report already offers a useful reality check.
“Overall, the municipality is doing pretty well, I think,” Ordway said.
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