| Overall Rating | Gold |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 79.39 |
| Liaison | Yolanda Cieters |
| Submission Date | March 5, 2021 |
Seattle University
OP-1: Emissions Inventory and Disclosure
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
2.69 / 3.00 |
Yolanda
Cieters Associate Director CEJS |
Has the institution conducted a GHG emissions inventory within the previous three years that includes all Scope 1 and 2 emissions? :
A copy of the most recent GHG emissions inventory:
A brief description of the methodology and/or tool used to complete the GHG emissions inventory:
Seattle University's CEJS staff (Center for Environmental Justice and Sustainability) collects SU's GHG data annually from different departments and inputs it in SIMAP.
--For Electricity/Compost/Waste/Natural Gas/Fertilizer Application: Program Managers from the different departments track greenhouse gas emissions input data for their department and fill out a datasheet (used since 2009 and annually updated for the GHG Emissions Inventory).
--For Gas/Diesel/Propane of University fleet: At the end of each fiscal year CEJS gathers the mileage (odometer readings) for the entire University fleet (leased and owned)
--Air Travel for Employees: calculated from reimbursement receipts staff/faculty
--Air Travel Study Abroad and Athletics students: data provided by Travel operator
--Population: data provided by SU Institutional Research
Has the GHG emissions inventory been validated internally by personnel who are independent of the GHG accounting and reporting process and/or verified by an independent, external third party?:
A brief description of the GHG inventory verification process:
Seattle University's Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory has been reviewed by SIMAP (Completed and confirmed by SIMAP on 02-16-2021).
Documentation to support the GHG inventory verification process:
Gross Scope 1 GHG emissions, performance year:
| Weight in MTCO2e | |
| Stationary combustion | 3,046.04 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Other sources (mobile combustion, process emissions, fugitive emissions) | 151.43 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
Total gross Scope 1 GHG emissions, performance year:
Gross Scope 2 GHG emissions, performance year (market-based):
| Weight in MTCO2e | |
| Imported electricity | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Imported thermal energy | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
Total gross Scope 2 GHG emissions, performance year:
Gross GHG emissions from biogenic sources, performance year:
Does the GHG emissions inventory include Scope 3 emissions from the following sources?:
| Yes or No | Weight in MTCO2e | |
| Business travel | Yes | 6,537.19 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Commuting | Yes | 6,095.88 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Purchased goods and services | No | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Capital goods | No | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Fuel- and energy-related activities not included in Scope 1 or Scope 2 | No | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Waste generated in operations | Yes | 175.99 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Other sources | No | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
Total Scope 3 GHG emissions, performance year:
A brief description of how the institution accounted for its Scope 3 emissions:
--Air Travel for Employees: calculated from reimbursement receipts staff/faculty
--Air Travel Study Abroad and Athletics students: data provided by Travel operator
--Commuting: For the FY19 GHG inventory, we used a campus-wide commuting survey conducted in November 2016 that surveyed respondents on their mode of commuting
--Waste data: provided by the Recycling Coordinator and Compost Technician at SU Facilities
Has the institution completed an inventory within the previous three years to quantify its air pollutant emissions?:
Annual weight of emissions for::
| Weight of Emissions | |
| Nitrogen oxides (NOx) | 2.40 Tons |
| Sulfur oxides (SOx) | 0 Tons |
| Carbon monoxide (CO) | 0 Tons |
| Particulate matter (PM) | 0 Tons |
| Ozone (O3) | 0 Tons |
| Lead (Pb) | 0 Tons |
| Hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) | 0 Tons |
| Ozone-depleting compounds (ODCs) | 0 Tons |
| Other standard categories of air emissions identified in permits and/or regulations | 0 Tons |
Do the air pollutant emissions figures provided include the following sources?:
| Yes or No | |
| Major stationary sources | Yes |
| Area sources | Yes |
| Mobile sources | Yes |
| Commuting | No |
| Off-site electricity production | No |
A brief description of the methodology(ies) the institution used to complete its air emissions inventory:
We have confirmed that we have no significant stationary sources for air emissions on campus.
SeattleU does not report any annual data to USEPA or the Washington Department of Ecology for the Clean Air Act at this time. Since SU does not operate under an Air Operating Permit, it has not been necessary to report over the last six years. An Air Operating Permit is a significant trigger for reporting and requires an organization to have Hazardous Air Pollutants from specific sources and above specific thresholds. Since we do not have specific sources like a powerplant, large volume Chlorine tanks, large volumes of highly toxic gases like ethylene oxide, or Ammonia it has not been necessary to obtain an Air Operating Permit, so no reporting.
Gross Scope 2 GHG emissions from purchased electricity (location-based):
Gross Scope 2 GHG emissions from imported thermal energy (location-based) :
Website URL where information about the institution’s emissions inventories is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
1. The GHG data in this credit is for Fiscal year 2019 (July 1, 2018-June 30, 2019). Data for FY20 was assumed to be non-representative due to COVID-19.
2. NOTE ABOUT SCOPE 2- GHG EMISSIONS FROM ELECTRICITY: We are reporting zero for electricity because our electricity provider, Seattle City Light is a carbon neutral utility. In 2005, SCL became the first electric utility in the country to achieve zero net greenhouse gas emissions. Most of its power supply portfolio includes hydropower (84%), nuclear (5%), wind (4%) and biogas (1%). Any emissions associated with unspecified market purchases are offset through their greenhouse gas neutrality policy. Also, SIMAP did a third-party verification of our GHG emissions inventory (see "Documentation to support the GHG inventory verification process" in PART 1 of this credit) and confirmed that we can claim “0” emissions for electricity as we have been doing since our FY09 baseline for our GHG inventories as well as for our 2016 and 2018 STARS reports.
1. The GHG data in this credit is for Fiscal year 2019 (July 1, 2018-June 30, 2019). Data for FY20 was assumed to be non-representative due to COVID-19.
2. NOTE ABOUT SCOPE 2- GHG EMISSIONS FROM ELECTRICITY: We are reporting zero for electricity because our electricity provider, Seattle City Light is a carbon neutral utility. In 2005, SCL became the first electric utility in the country to achieve zero net greenhouse gas emissions. Most of its power supply portfolio includes hydropower (84%), nuclear (5%), wind (4%) and biogas (1%). Any emissions associated with unspecified market purchases are offset through their greenhouse gas neutrality policy. Also, SIMAP did a third-party verification of our GHG emissions inventory (see "Documentation to support the GHG inventory verification process" in PART 1 of this credit) and confirmed that we can claim “0” emissions for electricity as we have been doing since our FY09 baseline for our GHG inventories as well as for our 2016 and 2018 STARS reports.
The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.