Overall Rating Platinum - expired
Overall Score 85.29
Liaison Tonie Miyamoto
Submission Date March 23, 2015
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.0

Colorado State University
OP-1: Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 3.80 / 10.00 Carol Dollard
Energy Engineer
Facilities Management
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Does the institution's GHG emissions inventory include all Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions?:
Yes

Does the institution's GHG emissions inventory include all Scope 3 GHG emissions from any of the following categories?:
Yes or No
Business travel Yes
Commuting Yes
Purchased goods and services No
Capital goods No
Fuel- and energy-related activities not included in Scope 1 or Scope 2 Yes
Waste generated in operations Yes

Does the institution's GHG emissions inventory include Scope 3 emissions from other categories?:
No

A brief description of the methodology and/or tool used to complete the GHG emissions inventory:

CSU is an ACUPCC signatory & reports their annual GHG inventory via that site. We utilize CACP as a tool to determine the GHG inventory. In addition, Climate Action Plans can be viewed there.


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:

All work is verified by the Climate Action Plan working group and reviewed by an outside consultant - The Brendle Group.


Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions::
Performance Year Baseline Year
Scope 1 GHG emissions from stationary combustion 56,700.90 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 60,594 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Scope 1 GHG emissions from other sources 9,701.50 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 6,937.70 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Scope 2 GHG emissions from purchased electricity 113,905.10 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 109,511.90 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Scope 2 GHG emissions from other sources 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Figures needed to determine total carbon offsets::
Performance Year Baseline Year
Institution-catalyzed carbon offsets generated 0 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 3,567.70 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 123.10 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Third-party verified carbon offsets purchased 3,099.70 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 3,915.80 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

A brief description of the institution-catalyzed carbon offsets program:
---

A brief description of the carbon sequestration program and reporting protocol used:
---

A brief description of the composting and carbon storage program:

CSU has an in-vessel composter where 2,000 # of food waste & animal bedding per day are composted. In addition, the agricultural programs have developed composting programs for the animal waste generated at their sites.


A brief description of the purchased carbon offsets, including third party verifier(s) and contract timeframes:

The university purchases RECs to offset the electricity use of the common areas in the residence halls. In addition, RECs are purchased to offset the emissions of new LEED buildings.


Figures needed to determine “Weighted Campus Users”::
Performance Year Baseline Year
Number of residential students 6,443 5,343
Number of residential employees 603 0
Number of in-patient hospital beds 0 0
Full-time equivalent enrollment 24,888.04 24,304.90
Full-time equivalent of employees 6,521 3,672
Full-time equivalent of distance education students 3,218 2,879

Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):
Start Date End Date
Performance Year July 1, 2013 June 30, 2014
Baseline Year July 1, 2009 June 30, 2010

A brief description of when and why the GHG emissions baseline was adopted:

FY10 was the year that CSU developed their first Climate Action Plan (CAP) and established a timeline for carbon neutrality.


Gross floor area of building space, performance year:
10,618,090 Square feet

Floor area of energy intensive building space, performance year:
Floor Area
Laboratory space 1,358,084 Square feet
Healthcare space 242,210 Square feet
Other energy intensive space 1,033,736 Square feet

Scope 3 GHG emissions, performance year::
Emissions
Business travel 20,096.70 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Commuting 21,440.20 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Purchased goods and services ---
Capital goods ---
Fuel- and energy-related activities not included in Scope 1 or Scope 2 11,262.20 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Waste generated in operations 903.80 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Other categories (please specify below) ---

A brief description of the sources included in Scope 3 GHG emissions from "other categories":
---

A copy of the most recent GHG emissions inventory:
---

The website URL where the GHG emissions inventory is posted:
A brief description of the institution’s GHG emissions reduction initiatives, including efforts made during the previous three years:

Greenhouse gas reductions have been a result of energy efficiency projects and renewable energy installations where CSU retained the environmental attributes. The uptick in GHG emissions for FY14 was due to an increase in the emissions factor from the local utility. CSU actually had a reduction in electric use, but the local utility burned more coal than the previous year - increasing the emissions factor.


Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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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.