Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 73.41
Liaison Jillian Leach
Submission Date Feb. 28, 2018
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

California State University, Chico
OP-1: Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 7.69 / 10.00 Fletcher Alexander
Sustainability Programs Manager
Institute for Sustainable Development
"---" 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 All
Fuel- and energy-related activities not included in Scope 1 or Scope 2 Some
Other categories Some

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:

The document attached above is from a 2010/2011 GHG emissions inventory completed in 2013. Subsequent inventories have been completed for fiscal years 2012/2013 (in 2015) and 2014/2015 (in 2017) for submission to Second Nature, however pdf report documents were not developed for those years.

CSU, Chico is a signatory to Second Nature's Climate Leadership Commitment and tracks and reports GHG emissions as required by the CLC. The University of New Hampshire's Campus Carbon Calculator (most recently version 9) is used to convert the primary form inputs into estimates of greenhouse gas emissions.

Scope 3 emissions sources:

Staff / Faculty / Student Commuting - captured by survey with >5% student response rate and a ~50% staff / faculty response rate.

Sponsored Travel - for state sponsored travel data on distance travelled and mode is pulled from each submitted travel expense claim and organized into a spreadsheet; for travel billed against a research foundation project copies of travel expense claims are copied and audited by ISD staff.

Solid Waste - tonnage of landfilled waste is tracked by Facilities Management and Services for mandated state reporting.

Wastewater - estimated as 80% of purchased / metered potable water.


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:

The emissions inventorying process is conducted biennially by staff in the Institute for Sustainable Development. Various staff from Facilities Management and Services and Pacific Gas and Electric have reviewed / verified different components of the data set and process.


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 5,666 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 6,442 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Gross Scope 1 GHG emissions from other sources 1,266 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 1,683 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Gross Scope 2 GHG emissions from purchased electricity 4,516 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 17,966 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 11,448 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 26,091 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 July 1, 2014 June 30, 2015
Baseline Year Jan. 1, 2006 Dec. 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):

N/A


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 32.20 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 222 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 52 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 254.20 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 52 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):

A small carbon offset is generated as methane emitted by waste at the landfill is captured and used to generate electricity; another small offset is generated on-site with food and green waste composting.


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:

N/A


Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions 11,193.80 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 26,039 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Figures needed to determine “Weighted Campus Users”:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Number of students resident on-site 2,261 2,027
Number of employees resident on-site 71 65
Number of other individuals resident on-site and/or staffed hospital beds 0 0
Total full-time equivalent student enrollment 16,335 14,897
Full-time equivalent of employees (staff + faculty) 1,548 1,454
Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education 0 0
Weighted campus users 13,995.25 12,786.25

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 0.80 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 2.04 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Percentage reduction in adjusted net Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions per weighted campus user from baseline:
60.73

Gross floor area of building space, performance year:
3,134,598 Gross square feet

Floor area of energy intensive building space, performance year:
Floor Area
Laboratory space 87,934 Square feet
Healthcare space 13,013 Square feet
Other energy intensive space 112,628 Square feet

EUI-adjusted floor area, performance year:
3,449,120 Gross square feet

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

Scope 3 GHG emissions, performance year:
Emissions
Business travel 2,292 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Commuting 14,158 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 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Other categories 294 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

A brief description of the institution’s GHG emissions reduction initiatives, including efforts made during the previous three years:

Please see link and attached doc below.


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:

Figures used to determine 'weighted campus users' provided by Institutional Research, Human Resources and University Housing.


Figures used to determine 'weighted campus users' provided by Institutional Research, Human Resources and University Housing.

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.