Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 49.09
Liaison Lissette Hernandez
Submission Date Aug. 22, 2017
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

Florida International University
OP-1: Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 3.59 / 10.00 Alexandra Dutton
Program Manager
Office of University Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

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 None
Commuting All
Purchased goods and services Some
Capital goods None
Waste generated in operations All
Fuel- and energy-related activities not included in Scope 1 or Scope 2 None
Other categories None

A copy of the most recent GHG emissions inventory:
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:

FIU utilizes The Campus Carbon Calculator (CCC) hosted by University of New Hampshire Sustainability Institute. It is a tool to help organizations determine how much they are contributing to global climate change, and how they can better manage their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The CCC was originally developed by the former non-profit Clean Air - Cool Planet and the Sustainability Institute at UNH in 2001 and released to the public in 2004. Usage grew from a few dozen early adopters to nearly 200 users during the first year. Today, thousands of institutions in the U.S. and abroad use the Calculator to track their institutional greenhouse gas emissions, including more than 90% of the U.S. colleges and universities that publicly report their emissions. In 2014, the Sustainability Institute at UNH assumed ownership of the Calculator and CarbonMAP.

Scope 3 emissions that are reported by FIU include commuting, paper purchasing, and solid waste. Commuting was calculated using population data, campus parking permit data, carpool permit data, and transit pass data. Paper purchasing data was provided by FIU's preferred office supplier, Office Depot. Solid waste numbers were provided by FIU Facilities Management, which obtains numbers from FIU's waste and Recycling Vendor, Waste Management.


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?:
No

A brief description of the internal and/or external verification process:
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Documentation to support the internal and/or external verification process:
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Does the institution wish to pursue Part 2 and Part 3 of this credit? (reductions in Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions):
Yes

Gross Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Gross Scope 1 GHG emissions from stationary combustion 3,704 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 2,569 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Gross Scope 1 GHG emissions from other sources 2,322 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 933 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Gross Scope 2 GHG emissions from purchased electricity 83,911 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 53,452 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 89,937 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 56,954 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, 2015 June 30, 2016
Baseline Year July 1, 2008 June 30, 2009

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):

Fiscal year 2009 (July 2008 to June 2009) was adopted as the baseline year because it is the furthest year back that has the fullest and most accurate data.


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

A brief description of the offsets in each category reported above, including vendor, project source, verification program and contract timeframes (as applicable):
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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 0 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:
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Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions 89,937 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 56,954 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Figures needed to determine “Weighted Campus Users”:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Number of students resident on-site 3,259 2,746
Number of employees resident on-site 7 7
Number of other individuals resident on-site and/or staffed hospital beds 0 0
Total full-time equivalent student enrollment 30,620 24,552
Full-time equivalent of employees (staff + faculty) 7,203 4,282
Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education 8,394 3,686
Weighted campus users 22,888.25 19,549.25

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 3.93 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 2.91 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Percentage reduction in adjusted net Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions per weighted campus user from baseline:
0

Gross floor area of building space, performance year:
9,886,975 Gross square feet

Floor area of energy intensive building space, performance year:
Floor Area
Laboratory space 214,797 Square feet
Healthcare space 19,071 Square feet
Other energy intensive space 509,043 Square feet

EUI-adjusted floor area, performance year:
10,863,754 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

Scope 3 GHG emissions, performance year:
Emissions
Business travel 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Commuting 59,669 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Purchased goods and services 323.50 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 2,179 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Other categories 7,627.50 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

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

Scope 2 T&D losses: 7,627.5 MTeCO2


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:
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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.