Overall Rating	Platinum - expired
Overall Score	85.05
Liaison	Lisa Kilgore
Submission Date	March 5, 2020
Executive Letter	Download

STARS v2.1

Cornell University
OP-1: Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Status	Score	Responsible Party
	6.18 / 10.00

"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Part 1

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	None
Fuel- and energy-related activities not included in Scope 1 or Scope 2	Some
Other categories	None

A copy of the most recent GHG emissions inventory:

FY2018_SIMAP_GHG_INVENTORY_CORNELL.pdf

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:

1) Obtain fuel records 2) Obtain purchased electric records 3) Calculate consumption 4) Determine commuting emissions using 3rd party commuting tool & SIMAP 5) Determine air travel mileage (input to SIMAP) 6) Input consumption and mileage data into SIMAP to determine emissions 7) Determine emissions associated with exported electric following WRI Protocol for Combined Heat & Power

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:

Emissions estimates are part of USEPA Clean Air Act Reporting requirements and are certified by Cornell's authorized regulatory official. Another managerial level staff member has also reviewed and approved. The Title V reporting components are different than STARS and Climate Commitment reporting; however, the Title V data does assist in validating the reasonableness of the majority of STARS / SIMAP data

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

Part 2

Gross Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions:

	Performance Year	Baseline Year
Gross Scope 1 GHG emissions from stationary combustion	141,558 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent	160,014 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Gross Scope 1 GHG emissions from other sources	3,429 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent	3,349 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Gross Scope 2 GHG emissions from purchased electricity	4,066 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent	87,339 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	149,053 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent	250,702 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, 2018	June 30, 2019
Baseline Year	July 1, 2004	June 30, 2005

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):

Cornell University is a reporting member of the Carbon Commitment with Second Nature, founding member of the original ACUPCC, and reports according to the protocols adopted for that system.

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	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	0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent	0 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	0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent	0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

If total performance year carbon offsets are greater than zero, provide:

A brief description of the offsets in each category reported above, including vendor, project source, verification program and contract timeframes (as applicable):

The Cornell Campus Sustainability Office provided advisory support in the development and piloting of an independent local carbon offset fund, the Finger Lakes Climate Fund. Several Cornell offices have voluntarily used the Finger Lakes Climate Fund to offset conferences and travel. Plans to expand the use of the program are under development.

The reporting fields in the table below are reserved for institutions that have NOT already accounted for renewable energy purchases (including RECs and GOs) in their Scope 2 GHG emissions calculations. Other institutions - including all SIMAP users - should report zero ('0') to avoid double-counting.

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	2,988 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:

For FY19 Cornell has multiple PPAs (Power Purchasing Agreements) to purchase renewable energy provided by multiple PV arrays located on Cornell lands not on the Ithaca campus. Total retired certificates related to PV electric purchases for FY19 is 13,750 MWh. The contract timeframe for each PPA is over 20 years. The vendors are Penelope, LLC (Snyder), and Building Energy (Geneva, Harford, Musgrave). Cornell is the owner of the environmental attributes. The attributes are retired via NYGATS and RGGI approved.

Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions:

	Performance Year	Baseline Year
Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions	146,065 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent	250,702 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Figures needed to determine “Weighted Campus Users”:

	Performance Year	Baseline Year
Number of students resident on-site	6,954	6,662
Number of employees resident on-site	33	35
Number of other individuals resident on-site and/or staffed hospital beds	481	459
Total full-time equivalent student enrollment	23,503	19,053
Full-time equivalent of employees (staff + faculty)	11,364	12,113
Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education	745	0
Weighted campus users	27,819.25	25,507.75

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	5.25 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent	9.83 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

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

46.58

Part 3

Gross floor area of building space, performance year:

16,024,745 Gross square feet

Floor area of energy intensive building space, performance year:

	Floor Area
Laboratory space	1,750,689 Square feet
Healthcare space	155,498 Square feet
Other energy intensive space	494,245 Square feet

EUI-adjusted floor area, performance year:

20,331,364 Gross square feet

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

0.01 MtCO2e per square foot

Optional Fields

Scope 3 GHG emissions, performance year:

	Emissions
Business travel	27,105 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Commuting	30,000 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	---

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

Since Fall 2016, Cornell University has provided a new report to guide future decision making on campus neutrality and energy decisions. "Options for Achieving a Carbon Neutral Campus by 2035 - Analysis of Solutions" outlines potential pathways to meeting campus energy demands of 100% renewable energy and zero carbon footprint by 2035. The initiatives include (1) Building High-Performance Buildings, (2) Conserving Energy in Existing Buildings, (3) Increasing electric vehicle capacity, (4) Campus engagement, and (5) Campus Energy Supply. Efforts over the last three years have focused on conserving energy in existing buildings and increasing the use of renewable energy. Cornell's Energy Conservation Initiative (ECI) was a $33 million dollar effort to reduce building energy consumption. A campus-wide LED retrofit effort was performed to reduce electric consumption. In addition, a dedicated energy conservation controls team (ECCT) consists of a team of nine technicians and one general foreman that works to maintain optimal building performance. Over 5MW of PV have been added over the last 3 years via PPAs (Power Purchase Agreements) in which a 3rd party developer builds a PV array on Cornell land and Cornell enters into a long term agreement to purchase the electricity generated. In addition, Cornell has numerous on-campus engagement/awareness initiatives to promote behavior change in terms of our energy footprint. Examples include dorm challenges and winter break communication. https://energyandsustainability.fs.cornell.edu/util/electricity/production/solarphotovoltaic/default.cfm

The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:

https://sustainablecampus.cornell.edu/our-leadership/cap

Additional documentation to support the submission:

---

Data source(s) and notes about the submission:

Estimated values are used for FY19 energy usage not part of the Cornell Central Energy Plant and will be revised upon finalization of FY19 values if they are determined to be material For instances where FY 2005 (base year) usage is unavailable, we assumed usage is comparable to FY15 values (i.e., no emissions reductions assumed). Scope 1 stationary combustion emissions includes a deduction associated with exported energy. Cornell's Combined Heat & Power facility will sometimes generate electricity that exceeds campus demand. This excess electric is exported to the grid. The deduction represents the emissions associated with this energy not used on campus. This value is approximately 33,713 metric tons. We would prefer reporting this value via Scope 3; however, the AASHE STARS input sheet cannot handle the input of negative values. Our SIMAP GHG reporting includes this adjustment in the "offset" field. The reduction in Scope 2 from base year to performance year (purchased electricity emissions) is the result of the CCHPP (Cornell Combined Heat & Power project). Most of the campus’s electric usage is generated on site via combustion turbines and the waste heat is used to generate steam for campus heating. See link: https://energyandsustainability.fs.cornell.edu/util/heating/production/cep.cfm. In addition, the upstate NY grid mix emission factor is significantly lower compared with 2005.