Bates College
OP-2: Greenhouse Gas Emissions
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
7.82 / 8.00 |
Tom
Twist Sustainability Manager Facilities |
Gross Scope 1 and Scope 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions:
| Performance year | Baseline year | |
| Gross Scope 1 GHG emissions from stationary combustion | 5,743 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 8,217.80 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Gross Scope 1 GHG emissions from other sources | 169 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 128 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Gross Scope 2 GHG emissions from imported electricity | 4,518 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 5,150 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Gross Scope 2 GHG emissions from imported thermal energy | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Total | 10,430 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 13,495.80 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
Figures needed to determine net carbon sinks:
| Performance year | Baseline year | |
| Third-party verified carbon offsets purchased | 9,932 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Institution-catalyzed carbon offsets generated | 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 |
| Carbon storage from non-additional sequestration | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | --- |
| Carbon sold or transferred | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Net carbon sinks | 9,932 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
A brief description of the carbon sinks, including vendor, project source, verification program and contract timeframes (as applicable):
For FY 2022, we purchased 9932 MT of carbon offsets - landfill gas recapture, third party verified by Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) voluntary market.
Adjusted net Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions:
| Performance year | Baseline year | |
| Adjusted net GHG emissions | 498 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 13,495.80 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):
| Performance year | Baseline year | |
| Start date | July 1, 2021 | July 1, 2000 |
| End date | July 1, 2022 | July 1, 2001 |
A brief description of when and why the GHG emissions baseline was adopted:
Our Energy Task Force, as well as our Committee for Environmental Responsibility, made up of Facilities and Faculty members, sought to begin the process of documenting our carbon emissions in 2000. The initial motivation for this came from the newly-hired part-time Environmental Coordinator, and from the Environmental Studies department. By 2001, they had put the structures in place to start collecting very basic energy data for the first GHG inventory. Our Environmental Coordinator also believed that it would be a good project to involve students in real-world data analysis, and so part of the initial motivation was student-driven.
Figures needed to determine “Weighted Campus Users”:
| Performance year | Baseline year | |
| Number of students resident on-site | 1,805 | 1,630 |
| Number of employees resident on-site | 130 | 120 |
| Number of other individuals resident on-site | 100 | 95 |
| Total full-time equivalent student enrollment | 1,821 | 1,645 |
| Full-time equivalent of employees | 696 | 876 |
| Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education | 0 | 0 |
| Weighted Campus Users | 2,471.50 | 2,423.25 |
Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions per weighted campus user:
| Performance year | Baseline year | |
| Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions per weighted campus user | 0.20 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 5.57 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
Percentage reduction in adjusted net Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions per weighted campus user from baseline:
Gross floor area of building space, performance year:
Floor area of energy intensive building space, performance year:
| Floor area | |
| Laboratory space | 183,609 Square feet |
| Healthcare space | 11,000 Square feet |
| Other energy intensive space | 445,770 Square feet |
EUI-adjusted floor area, performance year:
Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions per unit of EUI-adjusted floor area, performance year:
A brief description of the institution’s GHG emissions reduction initiatives:
We have converted our central heating plant to burn two new biomass-based fuels - the first is a liquid fuel, known as Renewable Fuel Oil, that has dramatically reduced our carbon emissions. It comes from a rapid pyrolysis process of waste sawdust - that is, the wood fibers are volatilized in the absence of oxygen, then condensed to form a liquid fuel. We were able to use our original central steam plant boilers to burn this fuel, which helped enormously with the cost of adoption of this new fuel. See Innovation Credit for more info.
The second fuel is LR100, which is waste vegetable oil. In FY22, we burned more of this than the RFO, because of supply-chain issues.
About a third of our reductions come from energy efficiency measures. Installing VFD's and heat recovery systems, as well as upgrading sections of our steam line, and insulating our largest buildings have helped us see a large EUI reduction. We have recently installed a more robust building controls and monitoring system, which has allowed us to establish night time and holiday setbacks.
We also purchase 100% green power for all our electricity. We have begun burning a B20 biodiesel blend in our smaller houses. We have hit our carbon neutrality goal a year yearly (2019), and are currently working towards attaining our 2030 goals.
Website URL where information about the institution's GHG emissions is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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.