Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 54.99
Liaison Denice Koljonen
Submission Date Feb. 6, 2019
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

Boston College
OP-1: Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 5.38 / 10.00 Bruce Dixon
Sustainability and Energy Specialist
Facilities
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Has the institution conducted a GHG emissions inventory that includes all Scope 1 and 2 emissions? :
Yes

Does the institution’s GHG emissions inventory include all, some or none of its Scope 3 GHG emissions from the following categories?:
All, Some, or None
Business travel All
Commuting All
Purchased goods and services None
Capital goods None
Waste generated in operations Some
Fuel- and energy-related activities not included in Scope 1 or Scope 2 None
Other categories None

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, including how the institution accounted for each category of Scope 3 emissions reported above:
Boston College acquired the services of Sightlines which uses a process called Return on Physical Assets to create a baseline for continuous measurement and improvement.

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?:
Yes

A brief description of the internal and/or external verification process:
Sightlines LLC is contracted annual to validate and document our inventory.

Documentation to support the internal and/or external verification process:
Does the institution wish to pursue Part 2 and Part 3 of this credit? (reductions in Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions):
Yes

Gross Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Gross Scope 1 GHG emissions from stationary combustion 24,287.63 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 28,299.94 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Gross Scope 1 GHG emissions from other sources 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Gross Scope 2 GHG emissions from purchased electricity 22,872.90 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 32,090.58 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Gross Scope 2 GHG emissions from other sources 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Total 47,160.53 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 60,390.52 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):
Start Date End Date
Performance Year June 1, 2015 May 31, 2016
Baseline Year June 1, 2005 May 31, 2006

A brief description of when and why the GHG emissions baseline was adopted (e.g. in sustainability plans and policies or in the context of other reporting obligations):
The baseline year was established as BC began working with Sightlines on a more comprehensive method of recording and reporting our overall emissions data.

Figures needed to determine total carbon offsets:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Third-party verified carbon offsets purchased (exclude purchased RECs/GOs) 0 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 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
Carbon offsets included above for which the emissions reductions have been sold or transferred by the institution 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Net carbon offsets 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

A brief description of the offsets in each category reported above, including vendor, project source, verification program and contract timeframes (as applicable):
N/A

Emissions reductions attributable to Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) or Guarantee of Origin (GO) purchases:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Emissions reductions attributable to REC/GO purchases 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

A brief description of the purchased RECs/GOs including vendor, project source and verification program:
---

Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions 47,160.53 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 60,390.52 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Figures needed to determine “Weighted Campus Users”:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Number of students resident on-site 7,378 7,082
Number of employees resident on-site 99 112
Number of other individuals resident on-site and/or staffed hospital beds 0 0
Total full-time equivalent student enrollment 13,311 14,570
Full-time equivalent of employees (staff + faculty) 3,247 2,278
Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education 528 404
Weighted campus users 13,891.75 14,131.50

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 3.39 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 4.27 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Percentage reduction in adjusted net Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions per weighted campus user from baseline:
20.56

Gross floor area of building space, performance year:
6,982,727 Gross square feet

Floor area of energy intensive building space, performance year:
Floor Area
Laboratory space 442,146 Square feet
Healthcare space 10,039 Square feet
Other energy intensive space 35,368 Square feet

EUI-adjusted floor area, performance year:
7,922,465 Gross square feet

Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions per unit of EUI-adjusted floor area, performance year:
0.01 MtCO2e per square foot

Scope 3 GHG emissions, performance year:
Emissions
Business travel 10,118 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Commuting 10,241 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Purchased goods and services 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Capital goods 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Fuel- and energy-related activities not included in Scope 1 or Scope 2 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Waste generated in operations 812 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Other categories 1,381 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

A brief description of the institution’s GHG emissions reduction initiatives, including efforts made during the previous three years:
Discounts offered to employees for public transportation, replacement and upgrades to equipment and machinery to run more efficiently, lighting changes to LEDs, waste audits to assess effectiveness of recycling program

The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
---

Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
Gross Floor Area is is different from IC-2 because of the different performance years (2015-2016 vs IC-2 2017-2018). Gross Floor Area of Building Space for performance year and baseline year does not include Outlying Properties. Outlying properties in the performance year consisted of less than 4% of the Gross Floor Area of Building Space. FTE data for Students and Staff is from Factbook 2014-15, FTE data for Faculty is from Factbook 2015-16. Base FTE Students abroad data was found in Factbook under undergraduate studying abroad 2005-06. Performance FTE Students abroad data was found in Factbook under undergraduate studying abroad 200.

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.