Overall Rating | Gold |
---|---|
Overall Score | 68.45 |
Liaison | Keisha Payson |
Submission Date | May 8, 2024 |
Bowdoin College
OP-6: Clean and Renewable Energy
Status | Score | Responsible Party |
---|---|---|
1.04 / 4.00 |
Keisha
Payson Sustainability Director Facilities Mgmt |
Total energy consumption, performance year:
Clean and renewable electricity (report kilowatt-hours):
kWh | MMBtu | |
Imported electricity from certified/verified clean and renewable sources (i.e., bundled green power purchases) | 631,000 Kilowatt-hours | 2,152.97 MMBtu |
Electricity from on-site, clean and renewable sources (rights retained/retired) | 34,000 Kilowatt-hours | 116.01 MMBtu |
A brief description of the certified/verified sources of clean and renewable electricity:
In 2014, Bowdoin began purchasing electricity from a 1.2MW solar photovoltaic PPA that is installed on the Bowdoin campus and provides about 8 percent of Bowdoin's annual electricity usage. The PPA is for a twenty-year term. The College did not purchase the RECs from these solar panels so can not claim any of the environmental benefits, although the College is proud to host this site, which was the largest solar project in the state of Maine at the time it was brought on line. Imported electricity from certified/verified sources come from a major solar project in Farmington, ME (that accounts for the majority of imported electricity), a solar project in Waltham, MA, and three certified hydroelectric projects.
A brief description of the on-site renewable electricity generating facilities/devices:
Bowdoin has maintained RECs for the solar PV panels on the new Roux Center for the Environment, so can thus claim the full environmental benefit of the system. There are 70 panels which produce 53,000 kWh annually.
Clean and renewable thermal energy (report MMBtu):
MMBtu | |
Clean and renewable stationary fuels used on-site to generate thermal energy | 0.09 MMBtu |
Imported steam, hot water, and/or chilled water from certified/verified clean and renewable sources | 0 MMBtu |
A brief description of the clean and renewable stationary fuels:
Thorne Dining Hall, the second largest user of hot water on campus, has a solar hot water system that produces 0.022145 MMBtu per year. There is another solar hot water system on the roof of the Schwartz Outdoor Leadership Center that provides domestic hot water to the kitchen, restrooms and showers of the building (these MMBtus not included).
A brief description of the certified/verified sources of clean and renewable thermal energy:
Unbundled renewable energy products (report kWh):
kWh | MMBtu | |
Purchased RECs, GOs, I-RECs or equivalent unbundled renewable energy products certified by a third party | 17,331,000 Kilowatt-hours | 59,133.37 MMBtu |
A brief description of the unbundled renewable energy products:
In the spring of 2018, as part of Bowdoin's effort to become carbon neutral, the campus purchased RECs to offset all remaining escope 2 (electricity) emissions, and carbon offsets to offset all remaining scope 1 and scope 3 emissions. Bowdoin purchased a total of 9557 wind RECs from Greenlight Energy Group in Oklahoma (9,557,000 kWh). One REC represents the environmental benefits of 1-megawatt hour (MWh) of renewable electricity generated and delivered to the power grid. By purchasing these products, we alone have the right to all associated claims about the environmental benefits they embodie.
Total clean and renewable energy generated or purchased:
Percentage of total energy consumption from clean and renewable sources:
Website URL where information about the institution’s support for clean and renewable energy is available:
Electricity use, by source (percentage of total, 0-100):
Percentage of total electricity use (0-100) | |
Biomass | --- |
Coal | --- |
Geothermal | --- |
Hydro | --- |
Natural gas | --- |
Nuclear | --- |
Solar photovoltaic | --- |
Wind | --- |
Other (please specify and explain below) | --- |
A brief description of other sources of electricity not specified above:
Energy used for heating buildings, by source::
Percentage of total energy used to heat buildings (0-100) | |
Biomass | --- |
Coal | --- |
Electricity | --- |
Fuel oil | --- |
Geothermal | --- |
Natural gas | --- |
Other (please specify and explain below) | --- |
A brief description of other sources of building heating not specified above:
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.