| Overall Rating | Gold - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 65.48 |
| Liaison | Heather Albert-Knopp |
| Submission Date | March 30, 2018 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
College of the Atlantic
OP-5: Building Energy Consumption
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
3.72 / 6.00 |
Andrea
Russell Sustainability Coordinator and Community Energy Center Program Manager -- |
"---"
indicates that no data was submitted for this field
Part 1
This credit is based on energy inputs from offsite sources and electricity produced by onsite renewables. When the institution purchases one fuel and uses it to produce heat and/or power, you should enter only what is purchased. For example, if the institution purchases natural gas to fuel a CHP system and produce steam and electricity, only the purchased natural gas should be reported.
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Grid-purchased electricity | 2,812.90 MMBtu | 3,177 MMBtu |
| Electricity from on-site renewables | 245.10 MMBtu | 0 MMBtu |
| District steam/hot water (sourced from offsite) | 0 MMBtu | 0 MMBtu |
| Energy from all other sources (e.g., natural gas, fuel oil, propane/LPG, district chilled water, coal/coke, biomass) | 10,616.70 MMBtu | 8,302 MMBtu |
| Total | 13,674.70 MMBtu | 11,479 MMBtu |
Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or 3-year periods):
| Start Date | End Date | |
| Performance Year | July 1, 2016 | June 30, 2017 |
| Baseline Year | July 1, 2004 | June 30, 2005 |
A brief description of when and why the building energy consumption baseline was adopted (e.g. in sustainability plans and policies or in the context of other reporting obligations):
The college's sustainability director started work in September 2005 and began using the Clean Air-Cool Planet Carbon Calculator in 2006. 2005 was presented as a reasonable base year because of the availability of data.
Gross floor area of building space:
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Gross floor area of building space | 14,153.49 Gross square meters | 10,427.15 Gross square meters |
Source-site ratio for grid-purchased electricity:
1.10
Total building energy consumption per unit of floor area:
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Site energy | 0.97 MMBtu per square meter | 1.10 MMBtu per square meter |
| Source energy | 0.99 MMBtu per square meter | 1.13 MMBtu per square meter |
Percentage reduction in total building energy consumption (source energy) per unit of floor area from baseline:
12.84
Part 2
| Degree days (see help icon above) | |
| Heating degree days | 4,152.22 Degree-Days (°C) |
| Cooling degree days | 368.33 Degree-Days (°C) |
Floor area of energy intensive space, performance year:
| Floor Area | |
| Laboratory space | 1,858.06 Square meters |
| Healthcare space | 0 Square meters |
| Other energy intensive space |
EUI-adjusted floor area, performance year:
20,741.25
Gross square meters
Building energy consumption (site energy) per unit of EUI-adjusted floor area per degree day, performance year:
45.01
Btu / GSM / Degree-Day (°C)
Optional Fields
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A brief description of the institution's initiatives to shift individual attitudes and practices in regard to energy efficiency (e.g. outreach and education efforts):
In June 2016, College of the Atlantic launched the Community Energy Center (CEC), which is specifically designed to bridge student energy work with community participation and to extend energy education to a wider audience.
The CEC seeks to foster continuity of the college’s many innovative student energy projects. These projects benefit community members while building students’ real-world skills. The CEC is the center of efforts to cultivate relationships between students and the community. The CEC welcomes partner organizations and individuals interested in collaboration, as shown through projects such as Solar for Businesses and Farms, Community Solar Farm Analysis, Electric Vehicle Connectivity, and Home Energy Audits with Air Sealing.
Maine’s tourism industry provides a unique platform to showcase such community engagement. The CEC’s proximity to Acadia provides a direct link to this extensive tourism industry as well as the opportunities for collaboration and projects entailed therein.
A brief description of energy use standards and controls employed by the institution (e.g. building temperature standards, occupancy and vacancy sensors):
In 2017, COA contracted with Maine Controls to upgrade and overhaul the mechanical control systems in three of the campus’ largest buildings: The 56-bed residence Blair-Tyson, the Thomas S. Gates, Jr. Community Center, and the mixed-use dining hall, library, and administration building Kaelber Hall. This project which was completed near the end of 2017, includes upgrading thermostats to give occupants a level of individual control while maintaining central control over the heating systems thereby reducing energy losses through inefficiency. Buildings are set to occupied/unoccupied temperature standards, and thermostats and heating infrastructure are monitored centrally for efficiency and system health. Residents of Blair-Tyson report better control of the temperature inside the building and inside the dorm rooms specifically. Different temperature standards are implemented according to the season of the year. Electricity use in each building is monitored and centrally available, allowing for more detailed analysis of building energy consumption.
A brief description of Light Emitting Diode (LED) lighting and other energy-efficient lighting strategies employed by the institution:
College of the Atlantic has a policy of purchasing LED lightbulbs when possible. Nearly half of the lights on campus are LED at the time of the survey at hand. When applicable, lightbulbs needing replacement are done so with LED bulbs.
LED lighting is used in the Kathryn W. Davis Student Residences (opened in Sept. 2008). These residences house 51 students.
A brief description of passive solar heating, geothermal systems, and related strategies employed by the institution:
The Kathryn W. Davis Student Residences were sited to take advantage of natural sunlight and views of the Atlantic Ocean. From the booklet about them: "All six new student residences have ocean views and are oriented for optimum solar harvesting."
A brief description of co-generation employed by the institution, e.g. combined heat and power (CHP):
None.
A brief description of the institution's initiatives to replace energy-consuming appliances, equipment and systems with high efficiency alternatives (e.g. building re-commissioning or retrofit programs):
In spring 2015, College of the Atlantic had energy audits performed for all buildings on campus, as well as for our off-site farm houses, barns, and outbuildings. Utilizing this information, and in conjunction with an inventory of heating system age for all buildings, we are working to prioritize which buildings are most in need of energy retrofitting. As we retrofit the leakiest buildings that contain the most inefficient or oldest heating systems, we are able to reduce our heating demand, enabling the purchase of smaller, more efficient heating systems going forward.
Built in 1895, the granite stone, 13,000 square foot 'cottage' known as the Turrets was renovated in 2013 by replacing 99 old, leaky single pane windows with new thermopane (double glazed) windows. Air sealing dramatically tightened the building. Before and after renovation blower door tests found a 49% reduction in air infiltration. This improvement saved 1400 gallons of heating oil during the 2013-2014 winter. Another old ocean front cottage known as Deering was renovated in 2008 and hooked into the central wood pellet boiler system that provides both heat and hot water to the Kathryn W. Davis Student Residences.
The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
For the question above about Grid Purchased Electricity Source-to-Site ratio we used: http://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy07osti/38617.pdf
According to this governmental document our source-to-site numbers should be .112 for electricity and 1.56 for heating. However, the calculator forces us to use a value greater than 1.
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.