Louisiana State U.’s John Lombardi Blocks Chancellor’s Bid to Sign Climate Pact

The newly appointed president of the Louisiana State University system, John V. Lombardi, has blocked plans by the departing chancellor of the system’s flagship campus to sign a carbon-neutrality pact, the Associated Press reported today.

Friday is Chancellor Sean O’Keefe’s last day on the job at the Baton Rouge campus. He had planned today to sign the American College & University Presidents Climate Commitment, the goal of which is to eliminate campus contributions of greenhouse gases. Four hundred and eighty-two other institutions have signed the commitment, but several have refused to do so.

Mr. Lombardi said he wanted to assess the cost of signing the agreement, and would also consider the involvement of the system’s nine other campuses.

The change in plans, said Mr. O’Keefe, is another example of the philosophical differences that led to his resignation, on January 16. Mr. O’Keefe has suggested that he lacks the full support of Mr. Lombardi or LSU’s governing board. —Paul Fain