Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 50.16
Liaison Elaine Durr
Submission Date Nov. 9, 2015
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.0

Elon University
OP-26: Water Use

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 0.00 / 3.00 David Webb
Facility Engineer
Physical Plant
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

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

Total water use (potable and non-potable combined)::
Performance Year Baseline Year
Total water use 89,681,256 Gallons 89,681,256 Gallons

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Potable water use::
Performance Year Baseline Year
Potable water use 60,628,524 Gallons 60,628,524 Gallons

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Figures needed to determine "Weighted Campus Users"::
Performance Year Baseline Year
Number of residential students 3,496 3,496
Number of residential employees 22 22
Number of in-patient hospital beds 0 0
Full-time equivalent enrollment 6,355 6,355
Full-time equivalent of employees 1,347 1,347
Full-time equivalent of distance education students 0 0

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Gross floor area of building space::
Performance Year Baseline Year
Gross floor area 2,705,892 Square feet 2,705,892 Square feet

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Area of vegetated grounds::
Performance Year Baseline Year
Vegetated grounds 483.50 Acres 483.50 Acres

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Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):
Start Date End Date
Performance Year June 1, 2014 May 31, 2015
Baseline Year June 1, 2014 May 31, 2015

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A brief description of when and why the water use baseline was adopted:
2014-2015 was selected for the baseline year for this credit because historical data is not available for all of the data points required for this credit.

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Water recycled/reused on campus, performance year:
29,052,735 Gallons

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Recycled/reused water withdrawn from off-campus sources, performance year:
0 Gallons

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A brief description of any water recovery and reuse systems employed by the institution:
Elon's automatic irrigation system is supplied with reclaimed stormwater. A significant amount of stormwater from Elon's campus is directed into three man-made ponds on campus, and these ponds are then connected to the irrigation system. This system is beneficial to the local watershed in that it prevents sediment and other materials from entering nearby natural waterways.

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A brief description of any water metering and management systems employed by the institution:
Utility billing meters are installed throughout the campus for water, which enables the university to know its total water consumption. Several of the buildings on campus (over 80 including residence halls) are individually metered for water.

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A brief description of any building retrofit practices employed by the institution, e.g. to install high efficiency plumbing fixtures and fittings:
In the last seven years, the university has replaced most toilets and shower heads with low-flow models. Faucet aerators have also been installed in most lavatory locations.

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A brief description of any policies or programs employed by the institution to replace appliances, equipment and systems with water-efficient alternatives:
In 2006, the University replaced washing machines with Energy Star models, which also use less water. As water using equipment and systems are replaced, water efficiency is considered.

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A brief description of any water-efficient landscape design practices employed by the institution (e.g. xeriscaping):
Plants are selected based upon their proven and demonstrated success to thrive in this heat, hardiness and climatic zone.

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A brief description of any weather-informed irrigation technologies employed by the institution:
The stormwater irrigation system is controlled by a centralized Toro Sentinel system. This system is connected to an on-site weather station which is used to calculate evapotranspiration rates which can be used to calculate the length of irrigation periods. It is also connected to flow meters so leaks are automatically detected; when leaks are detected, the system shuts itself off. All of these features help minimize waste by irrigating only when needed.

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A brief description of other water conservation and efficiency strategies employed by the institution:
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The website URL where information about the institution’s water conservation and efficiency initiatives is available:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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