Overall Rating	Gold - expired
Overall Score	81.82
Liaison	Ryan Ihrke
Submission Date	Feb. 23, 2018
Executive Letter	Download

STARS v2.1

Green Mountain College
OP-22: Water Use

Status

Score

Responsible Party

1.20 / 4.00

Ryan Ihrke
Director of Sustainability
Sustainability

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

Level of ”Physical Risk QUANTITY” for the institution’s main campus as indicated by the World Resources Institute’s Aqueduct Water Risk Atlas:

Low

Part 1

Total water use (potable and non-potable combined):

	Performance Year	Baseline Year
Total water use	---	7,455,540 Gallons

Potable water use:

	Performance Year	Baseline Year
Potable water use	6,546,300 Gallons	7,455,540 Gallons

Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):

	Start Date	End Date
Performance Year	July 1, 2016	June 30, 2017
Baseline Year	July 1, 2006	June 30, 2007

If end date of the baseline year/period is 2004 or earlier, provide:

A brief description of when and why the water use baseline was adopted:

The water use baseline of FY 2007 was chosen to be consistent with our other baselines.

Figures needed to determine "Weighted Campus Users":

	Performance Year	Baseline Year
Number of students resident on-site	480	577
Number of employees resident on-site	12	5
Number of other individuals resident on-site and/or staffed hospital beds	7	0
Total full-time equivalent student enrollment	850	749
Full-time equivalent of employees (staff + faculty)	167.20	188.75
Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education	288	30
Weighted campus users	676.90	826.31

Potable water use per weighted campus user:

	Performance Year	Baseline Year
Potable water use per weighted campus user	9,671.00 Gallons	9,022.66 Gallons

Percentage reduction in potable water use per weighted campus user from baseline:

Part 2

Gross floor area of building space:

	Performance Year	Baseline Year
Gross floor area	493,298 Gross square feet	478,745 Gross square feet

Potable water use per unit of floor area:

	Performance Year	Baseline Year
Potable water use per unit of floor area	13.27 Gallons per square foot	15.57 Gallons per square foot

Percentage reduction in potable water use per unit of floor area from baseline:

14.79

Part 3

Does the institution wish to pursue Part 3 of this credit? (reductions in total water use per acre/hectare of vegetated grounds):

Yes

Area of vegetated grounds:

	Performance Year	Baseline Year
Vegetated grounds	181.60 Acres	181.60 Acres

Total water use (potable + non-potable) per unit of vegetated grounds:

	Performance Year	Baseline Year
Total water use per unit of vegetated grounds	0 Gallons per acre	41,054.74 Gallons per acre

Percentage reduction in total water use per unit of vegetated grounds from baseline:

---

Optional Fields

A brief description of the institution's water-related behavior change initiatives, e.g. initiatives to shift individual attitudes and practices such as signage and competitions:

Signage has been placed some residence hall restrooms encouraging students to turn off the faucet when brushing, shaving, or lathering their hands.

A brief description of the institution's water recovery and reuse initiatives:

Rain water is captured in a rain barrels at two locations and reused for watering plants. Site 1: Native Plant Nursery. The OVaL (Occupy Vacant Lots) shed designed and built by assistant professor Lucas Brown's design/build class is located on the west side of campus and serves as a greenhouse and storage shed for the Champlain Valley Native Plant Restoration Nursery. The nursery provides hands-on laboratory experience for GMC students and provides a reliable source of native plants for local landowners and ecological restoration projects. Non-potable water is captured in a rain barrel utilizing the design of a butterfly roof on the OVaL shed and reused for watering the plants. Site Number 2: Cerridwen Farm In 2016, a student installed a rain water barrel outside of the Cerridwen Farm Farmhouse. Water is collected from the farmhouse roof and used to water the kitchen garden in front of the farmhouse.

A brief description of the institution's initiatives to replace plumbing fixtures, fittings, appliances, equipment, and systems with water-efficient alternatives (e.g. building retrofits):

In FY16, additional efforts from the Sustainability Office and Facilities has been placed in identifying leaks and failed meters across campus. A significant leak on the campus farm was identified, caused by a water line that was not buried deep enough below grade and has ruptured during the winter. An additional leak likely caused by the same issue is currently being addressed between a residence hall and the library. When the leaks have been found, if it can't be addressed immediately due to weather, the line is shut off and turned on only when water is necessary. Facilities has been developing a communication strategy and signage to enable additional staff on campus the training and ability to shut off water when emergency leaks occur during non-business hours to limit high volume releases of water. Facilities has also installed water saving flush kits on five toilets in recent years. In the Spring of 2016, a pair of students inventoried the current efficiency of toilets and showers in the residence halls and offered recommendations on reducing water usage in the residence halls. In the fall of 2014, a student project explored the possibility of replacing the already low efficiency shower heads with even more efficient heads, and using a model that can easily be adjusted by students allowing for varying degrees of pressure and for the ability to pause the flow so that students can lather up before continuing.

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

http://www.greenmtn.edu/sustainability/sustainability-on-campus/grounds-water/

Additional documentation to support the submission:

---

Data source(s) and notes about the submission:

Performance year for gallons of water used is FY 2017. Baseline year is FY 2007. Numbers do not include the Killington campus because the data were difficult to obtain. GMC leases the lodge and the owner pays the water bill. For the vegetated lands definition, GMC uses total acreage minus buildings and impervious surfaces. The 85 acre Deane’s Nature preserve was included in this total acreage. Water use from the farms and athletic fields was not factored out.