Overall Rating	Gold - expired
Overall Score	74.78
Liaison	Daryl Pierson
Submission Date	March 5, 2021

STARS v2.2

Portland State University
OP-10: Biodiversity

Status	Score	Responsible Party
	1.00 / 1.00 This credit is weighted more heavily for institutions that own or manage land that includes or is adjacent to any of the following: Legally protected areas (e.g., IUCN Category I-VI) Internationally recognized areas (e.g., World Heritage, Ramsar, Natura 2000) Priority sites for biodiversity (e.g., Key Biodiversity Areas, Alliance for Zero Extinction sites) Regions of conservation importance (e.g., Endemic Bird Areas, Biodiversity Hotspots, High Biodiversity Wilderness Areas) 2 points are available for this credit if the institution owns or manages land that includes or is adjacent to any of the above. 1 point is available for this credit for all other institutions. Close	Amanda Wolf Program + Assessment Coordinator Campus Sustainability Office

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Does the institution own or manage land that includes or is adjacent to legally protected areas, internationally recognized areas, priority sites for biodiversity, or regions of conservation importance?:

A brief description of the legally protected areas, internationally recognized areas, priority sites for biodiversity, and/or regions of conservation importance:

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Endangered and vulnerable species

Has the institution conducted an assessment to identify endangered and vulnerable species (including migratory species) with habitats on land owned or managed by the institution?:

Yes

A list of endangered and vulnerable species with habitats on land owned or managed by the institution, by level of extinction risk:

Portland State University participates in the Oregon Biodiversity Information Center (ORBIC), which maintains databases of endangered species across Oregon, including information on endangered and vulnerable species with habitats near campus land. Within 1 mile of the center of campus, there are 11 identified species listed as sensitive or critically vulnerable.

The list includes: Green Sturgeon, Painted Turtle, Townsend's big-eared bat, Pacific lamprey, Olympia pebblesnail, Bald Eagle, Coho Salmon, Steelhead, and Chinook Salmon (3 different types).

Areas of biodiversity importance

Has the institution conducted an assessment to identify areas of biodiversity importance on land owned or managed by the institution?:

Yes

A brief description of areas of biodiversity importance on land owned or managed by the institution:

The school has reviewed its space and not identified areas of biodiversity importance, as the school is in an urban setting. However, the school is working on protecting and expanding green space across campus. To that end, the school has studied tree canopy on land owned by the institution. As an urban campus, this is the primary biodiversity managed by the school. The study found surface coverage at 69%. As part of the study, researchers found that there were 21 native avian species (most widely were American Crow, Dark-eyed Junco, and Song Sparrow) on campus.

Methodologies

If yes to either of the above, provide the following:

The methodologies used to identify endangered and vulnerable species and/or areas of biodiversity importance and any ongoing assessment and monitoring mechanisms:

The Oregon Biodiversity Information Center is an inter-campus collaboration with the Oregon University System's Institute for Natural Resources. For the STARS report, we queried data for species within 1 mile of the center of campus (an area which includes all of campus as well as non-campus lands).

The study about tree canopy cover was conducted by a student as a project for an environmental science faculty member, who reviewed the methodology and findings.

A brief description of the scope of the assessment(s):

The endangered species assessment includes campus and non-campus land, as the database can only query based on a minimum radius of 1 mile.

The tree canopy study's scope was the entirety of campus.

A brief description of the plans or programs in place to protect or positively affect identified species, habitats, and/or ecosystems:

Portland State's Open Space Plan addresses landscaping and gardens (pages 27 and 28) as ways to protect and positively affect ecosystems in the urban environment the school sits in. The Open Space Plan was adopted in April 2019.

Open Space Plan: https://www.pdx.edu/campus-planning/sites/www.pdx.edu.campus-planning/files/OpenSpacePlan_final42519.pdf

Optional Fields

Estimated percentage of areas of biodiversity importance that are also protected areas :

Website URL where information about the institution’s biodiversity initiatives is available:

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Additional documentation to support the submission:

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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:

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