Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 70.79
Liaison Yumiko Jakobcic
Submission Date March 1, 2019
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

Grand Valley State University
OP-5: Building Energy Consumption

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 4.25 / 6.00 Yumiko Jakobcic
Campus Sustainability Coordinator
Office of Sustainability Practices
"---" 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.

Figures needed to determine total building energy consumption:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Grid-purchased electricity 199,282.77 MMBtu 186,681 MMBtu
Electricity from on-site renewables 1 MMBtu 0 MMBtu
District steam/hot water (sourced from offsite) 14,717 MMBtu 10,522 MMBtu
Energy from all other sources (e.g., natural gas, fuel oil, propane/LPG, district chilled water, coal/coke, biomass) 313,681 MMBtu 263,673 MMBtu
Total 527,681.77 MMBtu 460,876 MMBtu

Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or 3-year periods):
Start Date End Date
Performance Year July 1, 2017 June 30, 2018
Baseline Year July 1, 2005 June 29, 2006

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):
Baseline was selected when the university first started reporting and was chosen as a reasonable starting point

Gross floor area of building space:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Gross floor area of building space 5,941,769 Gross square feet 4,124,730 Gross square feet

Source-site ratio for grid-purchased electricity:
3.14

Total building energy consumption per unit of floor area:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Site energy 0.09 MMBtu per square foot 0.11 MMBtu per square foot
Source energy 0.16 MMBtu per square foot 0.21 MMBtu per square foot

Percentage reduction in total building energy consumption (source energy) per unit of floor area from baseline:
22.97

Part 2 

Degree days, performance year (base 65 °F / 18 °C):
Degree days (see help icon above)
Heating degree days 6,456 Degree-Days (°F)
Cooling degree days 803 Degree-Days (°F)

Floor area of energy intensive space, performance year:
Floor Area
Laboratory space 1,000,067 Square feet
Healthcare space 1,739 Square feet
Other energy intensive space

EUI-adjusted floor area, performance year:
8,136,664 Gross square feet

Building energy consumption (site energy) per unit of EUI-adjusted floor area per degree day, performance year:
8.93 Btu / GSF / Degree-Day (°F)

Optional Fields 

Documentation (e.g. spreadsheet or utility records) to support the performance year energy consumption figures reported above:
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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):
Students learn about individual behavior changes in a class called Sustainability As A Lifestyle. They also learn about best practices in housing during the energy competitions, and throughout the year at various sustainability education events.

A brief description of energy use standards and controls employed by the institution (e.g. building temperature standards, occupancy and vacancy sensors):
University uses a BMS (Building Management System) for controlling startup, shutdown, setback, occupied and non-occupied temperature set points.

A brief description of Light Emitting Diode (LED) lighting and other energy-efficient lighting strategies employed by the institution:
The university has been researching and installing LED lighting for the past 5 years. To date we have installed LEDs into several buildings, some tied to motion sensors. For exterior lighting the university has invested over .5 million dollars into installing over 800 LEDs for parking ramps, lots and street lighting.

A brief description of passive solar heating, geothermal systems, and related strategies employed by the institution:
Solar panels on the roof of an athletic building capture solar energy to help heat the water source in the locker rooms.

A brief description of co-generation employed by the institution, e.g. combined heat and power (CHP):
---

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):
Recommissioning is done on a case by case basis. It is done by troubleshooting mainly and is not a stand-alone program. However the university has recommissioned some buildings by a third party to provide some energy conservation measures.

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.