Overall Rating	Platinum
Overall Score	86.26
Liaison	Karen Oberer
Submission Date	Jan. 17, 2024

STARS v2.2

McGill University
OP-21: Water Use

Status

Score

Responsible Party

2.97 / 4.00

Josh Huizinga
Energy Manager
Facilities Management and Ancillary Services

"---" 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 Aqueduct Water Risk Atlas:

Low

Part 1. Reduction in potable water use per person

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

	Performance Year	Baseline Year
Total water withdrawal	1,521,000 Cubic meters	1,900,000 Cubic meters

Potable water use:

	Performance Year	Baseline Year
Potable water use	1,521,000 Cubic meters	1,900,000 Cubic meters

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

	Start Date	End Date
Performance Period	Jan. 1, 2022	Dec. 31, 2022
Baseline Period	Jan. 1, 2014	Dec. 31, 2014

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 was adopted in 2014 when the Ministry of Education required all postsecondary institutions to establish a water use baseline.

Figures needed to determine "Weighted Campus Users":

	Performance Year	Baseline Year
Number of students resident on-site	2,981	3,122
Number of employees resident on-site	32	15
Number of other individuals resident on-site	22	0
Total full-time equivalent student enrollment	31,511.40	31,755
Full-time equivalent of employees	7,779	6,979
Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education	447.60	32
Weighted campus users	29,907.35	29,810.75

Potable water use per weighted campus user:

	Performance Year	Baseline Year
Potable water use per weighted campus user	50.86 Cubic meters	63.74 Cubic meters

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

20.21

Part 2. Reduction in potable water use per unit of floor area

Gross floor area of building space:

	Performance Year	Baseline Year
Gross floor area	972,388 Gross square meters	891,994 Gross square meters

Potable water use per unit of floor area:

	Performance Year	Baseline Year
Potable water use per unit of floor area	1.56 Cubic meters per square meter	2.13 Cubic meters per square meter

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

26.57

Part 3. Reduction in total water withdrawal per unit of vegetated grounds

Area of vegetated grounds:

	Performance Year	Baseline Year
Vegetated grounds	12.45 Hectares	12.45 Hectares

Total water withdrawal per unit of vegetated grounds:

	Performance Year	Baseline Year
Total water withdrawal per unit of vegetated grounds	122,168.91 Cubic meters per hectare	152,610.74 Cubic meters per hectare

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

19.95

Optional Fields

A brief description of the institution's water-related behavior change initiatives:

Water meters have been installed in all buildings on the downtown campus and on the main water inlets at the Macdonald campus, making the future collection of detailed data on our water consumption possible. The McGill design standards require the installation of WaterSense labelled low-flow fixtures to ensure water efficiency and performance. Accurate water consumption assessments will enable McGill to quantify the impact of water conservation initiatives, while Facilities Management and Ancillary Services works toward reducing the water use by mechanical equipment and other fixtures.

Once the university obtains meter readings from the City of Montreal, it will be possible to collect and analyze the data. McGill will use this data to inform and launch water consumption awareness campaigns in future.

Source: https://www.mcgill.ca/facilities/sustainability/buildings

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

The university has two projects for implementing rain water harvesting in greenhouses.

A brief description of the institution's initiatives to replace plumbing fixtures, fittings, appliances, equipment, and systems with water-efficient alternatives:

The university has installed low-flow toilets and showerheads, as well as automatic faucets in many of the bathrooms on the downtown campus. Low-flow showerheads were also installed in the residences, which decreased water usage by an estimated 58,000L per day. Prior to new construction or major renovation projects, project teams must perform a preliminary water budget analysis before the completion of schematic design that explores how to reduce potable water loads. They must also assess and estimate the project’s potential non-potable water supply sources and water demand volumes, including the following: indoor water demand; outdoor water demand; process, services, and equipment water demand, as applicable; and alternative supply sources for non-potable water.
See: https://www.mcgill.ca/buildings/files/buildings/mcgill_01_81_13_sustainable_design_requirements_9.pdf

The university has worked towards converting or removing single-pass water cooled equipment across the campus. From these projects, water consumption has been reduced by an estimated 302,700 cubic meters per year.

Website URL where information about the institution’s water conservation and efficiency efforts is available:

https://www.mcgill.ca/facilities/sustainability/buildings

Additional documentation to support the submission:

---

Data source(s) and notes about the submission:

Water usage data for 2022 is based on historical data and was estimated by the Utilities and Energy Management Team. Updated data from the public utility will be available within the coming year (2023-2024).

The "area of vegetated grounds" includes:
- the Campus Planning and Development Office's calculation for the area of green space (6.37 ha)
- Macdonald Campus green space, which excludes farmland (6.08 ha).
- Total: 12.45 ha