Overall Rating Gold
Overall Score 67.18
Liaison Weston Dripps
Submission Date Aug. 19, 2024

STARS v3.0

Amherst College
OP-3: Water Use

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 2.99 / 6.00 Weston Dripps
Director of Sustainability
Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Level of water quantity risk for the institution’s main campus:
Low-medium

Performance year for water use:
2023

Peer group:
Baccalaureate colleges and boarding schools

Potable water from off-site sources:
149,988.70 Cubic meters

Reclaimed water from off-site sources:
0 Cubic meters

Other off-site water sources:
0 Cubic meters

Potable water from on-site sources:
0 Cubic meters

Other on-site water sources:
0 Cubic meters

Full-time equivalent student enrollment:
2,141

Full-time equivalent of employees:
1,065

Annual potable water use:
149,988.70 Cubic meters

Full-time equivalent students and employees:
3,206

Annual potable water use per person:
46,783.75 Liters

Points earned for indicator OP 3.1:
1.13

Gross floor area of building space:
183,997 Square meters

Annual potable water use per unit of floor area:
815.17 Liters per square meter

Points earned for indicator OP 3.2:
1.19

Does the institution harvest rainwater on-site for storage and use?:
Yes

Narrative and/or website URL providing an overview of the institution’s on-site rainwater harvesting systems:

Our Science Center does capture and use rainwater as part of its RO/DI system in the building. We had originally intended for the collection system to also fill the cooling towers at the central plant, but that has not happened.

Simiarly, our Greenway residence halls were designed to capture rainwater and reuse it for flushing toilets. However, we have struggled with this from the beginning. There were many maintenance issues, leaks, pumps failing, etc. Although we have the ability to capture rainwater, the system is currently offline and not being used.

 


Does the institution recover water on-site for reuse?:
No

Narrative and/or website URL providing an overview of the institution’s on-site water recovery and reuse systems:
---

Does the institution collect and return water to surface water or groundwater through on-site green infrastructure?:
Yes

Narrative and/or website URL providing an overview of the institution’s on-site green infrastructure:

Our three most recent buildings (Science Center, Greenway Residence Halls, Lyceum) all have built in rain gardens, designed to collect runoff from surrounding hardscape and allow this runoff to soak into the ground instead of washing away. Each rain garden is located adjacent to the buidings and are planted with plants, trees, and bushes that can survive in waterlogged environments.

The Science Center includes a Green Roof which provides habitat for a variety of plant, animal, and insect species, retains precipitation thereby reducing runoff, and helps regulate the building's indoor temperature.

 


Points earned for indicator OP 3.3:
0.67

Does the institution have methodologies in place to estimate or model the annual volume of water recovered and/or returned on-site?:
No

Narrative outlining the methodologies used to estimate or model the annual volume of water recovered and/or returned on-site:
---

Estimated volume of rainwater harvested on-site for storage and use:
---

Estimated volume of water recovered on-site for reuse:
---

Estimated volume of water collected and returned through on-site green infrastructure:
---

Annual volume of water recovered and/or returned:
0 Cubic meters

Total water withdrawal:
149,988.70 Cubic meters

Ratio of water recovered/returned to total water withdrawal:
0

Points earned for indicator OP 3.4:
0

Notes about the information provided for this credit:

Green roof on the top of the Science Center.