Overall Rating Gold
Overall Score 67.27
Liaison Jesse Russell
Submission Date Dec. 30, 2024

STARS v3.0

Canadore College
OP-3: Water Use

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 2.18 / 6.00
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

3.1 Potable water use per person

Level of water quantity risk for the institution’s main campus:
Low

Performance year for water use:
2023

Peer group:
Associate’s colleges, short-cycle institutions, and pre-tertiary schools

Potable water from off-site sources:
92,418 Cubic meters

Reclaimed water from off-site sources:
0 Cubic meters

Other off-site water sources:
0 Cubic meters

Potable water from on-site sources:
0 Cubic meters

Other on-site water sources:
0 Cubic meters

Full-time equivalent student enrollment:
4,576

Full-time equivalent of employees:
526

The Reporting Tool will automatically calculate the following four figures:

Annual potable water use:
92,418 Cubic meters

Full-time equivalent students and employees:
5,102

Annual potable water use per person:
18,114.07 Liters

Points earned for indicator OP 3.1:
0.52

3.2 Potable water use per square meter

Gross floor area of building space:
37,250.68 Square meters

The Reporting Tool will automatically calculate the following two figures:

Annual potable water use per unit of floor area:
2,480.97 Liters per square meter

Points earned for indicator OP 3.2:
0

3.3 Systems for water recovery and return

Does the institution harvest rainwater on-site for storage and use?:
Yes

Narrative and/or website URL providing an overview of the institution’s on-site rainwater harvesting systems:

The Clean Water Demonstration Site, a piece of Canadore College’s Clean Water Initiative, showcases a scaled water treatment system designed to serve up to 1,000 people. This innovative site demonstrates how drinking water can be sustainably produced from diverse sources, including rainwater. More importantly, it is part of a broader commitment to advancing water sovereignty for Indigenous communities, providing practical solutions and fostering resilience through access to clean, safe water. 

A diagram of how the system works can be found here

 


Does the institution recover water on-site for reuse?:
No

Narrative and/or website URL providing an overview of the institution’s on-site water recovery and reuse systems:
---

Does the institution collect and return water to surface water or groundwater through on-site green infrastructure?:
Yes

Narrative and/or website URL providing an overview of the institution’s on-site green infrastructure:

Yes, the institution collects and returns water to surface water through on-site green infrastructure. Several systems are in place to manage and treat runoff sustainably:

  1. Bioswales: Located beside parking lots, these trap runoff water, creating pond habitats. Overflow is directed to manage downhill water movement using rocks to slow runoff and reduce erosion.

  2. Meadow Habitat: Runoff is diverted through a managed micro-habitat meadow, where soil absorption occurs, and meadow vegetation absorbs nutrients.

  3. Holding Pond and Natural Stream: After sedimentation in a holding pond, water is returned to a natural stream.

  4. Stormwater Ponds: Additional stormwater ponds collect runoff from lower parking lots, capturing materials such as sand used in winter allowing natural absorption of water into the environment. 

  5. Rooftop Water Management: Water from campus rooftops is redirected back into the landscape using managed dripline areas to manage erosion. 

Note: budget allocated to create a large rainwater garden in 2025. 

 


The Reporting Tool will automatically calculate the following figure:

Points earned for indicator OP 3.3:
0.67

3.4 Ratio of water recovered/returned to total water withdrawal 

Does the institution have methodologies in place to estimate or model the annual volume of water recovered and/or returned on-site?:
Yes

Narrative outlining the methodologies used to estimate or model the annual volume of water recovered and/or returned on-site:

For harvested rainwater the clean water demonstration site houses 4500L and we estimate that it is reflied 4 times per year as needed.

For the green infrastructure we averaged 3 years of precipitation from annual data found here

We then looked at the surface area of parking lots at our Commerce Court and College Drive campuses, which feature on-site green infrastructure. 

Methodology:

Annual precipitation: 925.13 mm (3 year average) 

Surface area of parking lots and roofs: 197,800 m3

Account for loses or efficiencies: we estimate it to be 85% efficient.

To determine the total volume of rainwater collected, we use the formula:

Vcollected=155,616.86 m3

 


Estimated volume of rainwater harvested on-site for storage and use:
18 Cubic meters

Estimated volume of water recovered on-site for reuse:
---

Estimated volume of water collected and returned through on-site green infrastructure:
155,601.27 Cubic meters

The Reporting Tool will automatically calculate the following four figures:

Annual volume of water recovered and/or returned:
155,619.27 Cubic meters

Total water withdrawal:
92,418 Cubic meters

Ratio of water recovered/returned to total water withdrawal:
1.68

Points earned for indicator OP 3.4:
1

Optional documentation

Notes about the information provided for this credit:
---

Additional documentation for this credit:
---

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.