| Overall Rating | Reporter - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | |
| Liaison | Rebecca Jones |
| Submission Date | Feb. 29, 2016 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
Austin College
OP-1: Greenhouse Gas Emissions
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
Reporter |
Peter
Schulze Director Center for Environmental Studies |
"---"
indicates that no data was submitted for this field
None
Does the institution's GHG emissions inventory include all Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions?:
Yes
None
Does the institution's GHG emissions inventory include all Scope 3 GHG emissions from any of the following categories?:
| Yes or No | |
| Business travel | Yes |
| Commuting | Yes |
| Purchased goods and services | Yes |
| Capital goods | No |
| Fuel- and energy-related activities not included in Scope 1 or Scope 2 | Yes |
| Waste generated in operations | Yes |
None
Does the institution's GHG emissions inventory include Scope 3 emissions from other categories?:
Yes
None
A brief description of the methodology and/or tool used to complete the GHG emissions inventory:
The Coordinator for the Center of Environmental Studies, along with help from the Director, collects data from campus offices, energy providers, etc., for entry into the Campus Carbon Calculator, managed by the Sustainability Institute of the University of New Hampshire. Summaries, spreadsheets, and accompanying narratives are available at the Second Nature website (http://reporting.secondnature.org/)
None
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?:
No
None
A brief description of the internal and/or external verification process:
---
None
Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions::
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Scope 1 GHG emissions from stationary combustion | 2,853 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 2,466 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Scope 1 GHG emissions from other sources | 338 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 153 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Scope 2 GHG emissions from purchased electricity | 9,060 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 7,106 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Scope 2 GHG emissions from other sources | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
None
Figures needed to determine total carbon offsets::
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Institution-catalyzed carbon offsets generated | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Carbon sequestration due to land that the institution manages specifically for sequestration | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Carbon storage from on-site composting | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Third-party verified carbon offsets purchased | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
None
A brief description of the institution-catalyzed carbon offsets program:
---
None
A brief description of the carbon sequestration program and reporting protocol used:
---
None
A brief description of the composting and carbon storage program:
We have a food preparation waste and landscape waste composting program. Food preparation waste is collected daily and composted with wood chips provided by companies that trim trees around electric power lines. The compost is used on campus. Rough estimates of carbon sequestration are only a small fraction of our total greenhouse gas emissions. To date we have not included these estimates in our GHG inventories. In addition, we are restoring prairie to a 100-acre field site. That process is progressing and almost certainly sequestering carbon, but we do not yet have adequate soil organic matter data to produce rigorous quantitative estimates of sequestration.
None
A brief description of the purchased carbon offsets, including third party verifier(s) and contract timeframes:
---
None
Figures needed to determine “Weighted Campus Users”::
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Number of residential students | 822 | 947 |
| Number of residential employees | 10 | 10 |
| Number of in-patient hospital beds | 0 | 0 |
| Full-time equivalent enrollment | 1,294 | 1,291 |
| Full-time equivalent of employees | 319 | 305 |
| Full-time equivalent of distance education students | 0 | 0 |
None
Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):
| Start Date | End Date | |
| Performance Year | July 1, 2013 | June 30, 2014 |
| Baseline Year | July 1, 2007 | June 30, 2008 |
None
A brief description of when and why the GHG emissions baseline was adopted:
Austin College President Emeritus Oscar Page signed the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment in 2007. We completed our first greenhouse gase inventory for fiscal year 2008. Because that was our first inventory we consider it our baseline. However, we reduced electricity consumption 7% from 2004 to 2008 thanks to new leadership in the Physical Plant. A LEED Gold certified science building opened in 2013, increasing or energy consumption, but we have simultaneously shifted to more and more wind-generated electricity (RECs) as explained elsewhere in this report.
None
Gross floor area of building space, performance year:
974,054
Square feet
None
Floor area of energy intensive building space, performance year:
| Floor Area | |
| Laboratory space | 29,925 Square feet |
| Healthcare space | 3,900 Square feet |
| Other energy intensive space | 0 Square feet |
None
Scope 3 GHG emissions, performance year::
| Emissions | |
| Business travel | 518 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Commuting | 845 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Purchased goods and services | 596 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Capital goods | --- |
| Fuel- and energy-related activities not included in Scope 1 or Scope 2 | 570 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Waste generated in operations | 1,608 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Other categories (please specify below) | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
None
A brief description of the sources included in Scope 3 GHG emissions from "other categories":
0
None
A copy of the most recent GHG emissions inventory:
None
The website URL where the GHG emissions inventory is posted:
None
A brief description of the institution’s GHG emissions reduction initiatives, including efforts made during the previous three years:
Increased electricity offsetting with RECs, achieving nearly 100% offsetting in FY 2015 (85%) for the FY 2014 reporting period of this submission). Also, last year all outdoor campus lighting was converted to LEDs and the College Administration approved a no idling policy. Indoor lighting is being incrementally converted. Our FY 2014 greenhouse gas inventory is available at http://reporting.secondnature.org/
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
The greenhouse data was collected for Fiscal Year 2014 (July 1, 2013 - June 30, 2014). In FY 2013, the IDEA Center (Math and Science) building was completed and came "online". Because of this introduction there was an increase in the electricity consumed. This new science building, however, was built in compliance with LEED standards and is Gold Certified.
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.