Overall Rating Gold
Overall Score 72.81
Liaison Austin Eriksson
Submission Date Nov. 29, 2021

STARS v2.2

California State University, Northridge
OP-21: Water Use

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 5.47 / 6.00 Austin Eriksson
Director of Energy and Sustainability
FPDC
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Level of ”Physical Risk Quantity” for the institution’s main campus as indicated by the World Resources Institute Aqueduct Water Risk Atlas:
High

Part 1. Reduction in potable water use per person 

Total water withdrawal (potable and non-potable combined):
Performance Year Baseline Year
Total water withdrawal 184,116,733.60 Gallons 248,916,448 Gallons

Potable water use:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Potable water use 184,116,733.60 Gallons 248,916,448 Gallons

Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):
Start Date End Date
Performance Period July 1, 2018 June 30, 2019
Baseline Period July 1, 2012 June 30, 2013

If end date of the baseline year/period is 2004 or earlier, provide:

A brief description of when and why the water use baseline was adopted:
2013 is being used as the baseline year because the Governors E.O. has established that year as the baseline for the 25% (16% for our local utility) reduction goal in Ca.

Figures needed to determine "Weighted Campus Users":
Performance Year Baseline Year
Number of students resident on-site 2,423 2,703
Number of employees resident on-site 103 0
Number of other individuals resident on-site 2 0
Total full-time equivalent student enrollment 32,111 31,288
Full-time equivalent of employees 3,327 2,990
Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education 3,256 2,850
Weighted campus users 24,770 24,246.75

Potable water use per weighted campus user:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Potable water use per weighted campus user 7,433.05 Gallons 10,265.97 Gallons

Percentage reduction in potable water use per weighted campus user from baseline:
27.60

Part 2. Reduction in potable water use per unit of floor area

Gross floor area of building space:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Gross floor area 6,205,454 Gross square feet 6,007,523 Gross square feet

Potable water use per unit of floor area:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Potable water use per unit of floor area 29.67 Gallons per square foot 41.43 Gallons per square foot

Percentage reduction in potable water use per unit of floor area from baseline:
28.39

Part 3. Reduction in total water withdrawal per unit of vegetated grounds 

Area of vegetated grounds:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Vegetated grounds 95 Acres 95 Acres

Total water withdrawal per unit of vegetated grounds:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Total water withdrawal per unit of vegetated grounds 1,938,070.88 Gallons per acre 2,620,173.14 Gallons per acre

Percentage reduction in total water withdrawal per unit of vegetated grounds from baseline:
26.03

Optional Fields 

A brief description of the institution's water-related behavior change initiatives:
---

A brief description of the institution's water recovery and reuse initiatives:
CSUN has a demonstration project with one cistern for capturing rainfall. In addition to this, the university has several bioswales for filtering and capturing rainwater from hardscapes.

A brief description of the institution's initiatives to replace plumbing fixtures, fittings, appliances, equipment, and systems with water-efficient alternatives:
CSUN has taken advantage of several of our local utility's rebate programs to install low flow aerators and low flow or waterless urinals campus-wide, implementing low flow toilets as well as countless landscape renovations and improvements.

Website URL where information about the institution’s water conservation and efficiency efforts is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
---

Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
The small difference between weighted campus user for the (performance year) and the weighted campus user in PRE-5 is because these numbers refer to different years. 2019 was selected as the performance because it was the most recent calendar year representative of normal operations (due to the COVID-19 pandemic). Figures in PRE-5 reflect the 2020 year, and include the population change.

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.