Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 52.41
Liaison Susan Dorward
Submission Date April 14, 2015
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.0

Raritan Valley Community College
OP-1: Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 6.08 / 10.00 Susan Dorward
Sustainability and Energy Coordinator
Facilities and Grounds
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Does the institution's GHG emissions inventory include all Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions?:
Yes

Does the institution's GHG emissions inventory include all Scope 3 GHG emissions from any of the following categories?:
Yes or No
Business travel No
Commuting Yes
Purchased goods and services No
Capital goods No
Fuel- and energy-related activities not included in Scope 1 or Scope 2 No
Waste generated in operations Yes

Does the institution's GHG emissions inventory include Scope 3 emissions from other categories?:
No

A brief description of the methodology and/or tool used to complete the GHG emissions inventory:

The college used Clean Air Cool Planet's online CarbonMAP tool.


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?:
Yes

A brief description of the internal and/or external verification process:

The report, data files, and access to the campuscarbon.com web site were provided to Brian O'Rourke, Executive Director of Facilities & Grounds, who reviewed and verified the inventory.


Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions::
Performance Year Baseline Year
Scope 1 GHG emissions from stationary combustion 1,913.97 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 5,482 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Scope 1 GHG emissions from other sources 58 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 33 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Scope 2 GHG emissions from purchased electricity 4,035.16 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 4,927 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Scope 2 GHG emissions from other sources 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Figures needed to determine total carbon offsets::
Performance Year Baseline Year
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
Third-party verified carbon offsets purchased 903.67 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
+ Date Revised: Aug. 21, 2015
0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

A brief description of the institution-catalyzed carbon offsets program:
---

A brief description of the carbon sequestration program and reporting protocol used:
---

A brief description of the composting and carbon storage program:
---

A brief description of the purchased carbon offsets, including third party verifier(s) and contract timeframes:

The College purchased Green-e certified National Wind energy from Direct Energy.


Figures needed to determine “Weighted Campus Users”::
Performance Year Baseline Year
Number of residential students 0 0
Number of residential employees 0 0
Number of in-patient hospital beds 0 0
Full-time equivalent enrollment 14,051 8,973
Full-time equivalent of employees 392 363
Full-time equivalent of distance education students 1,745 597

Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):
Start Date End Date
Performance Year July 1, 2013 June 30, 2014
Baseline Year July 1, 2004 June 30, 2005

A brief description of when and why the GHG emissions baseline was adopted:

This baseline was adopted when we applied for STARS in 2011.


Gross floor area of building space, performance year:
510,000 Square feet

Floor area of energy intensive building space, performance year:
Floor Area
Laboratory space 12,500 Square feet
Healthcare space 0 Square feet
Other energy intensive space 1,000 Square feet

Scope 3 GHG emissions, performance year::
Emissions
Business travel 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Commuting 27,544.19 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Purchased goods and services 66.17 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Capital goods ---
Fuel- and energy-related activities not included in Scope 1 or Scope 2 ---
Waste generated in operations 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Other categories (please specify below) 4.26 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

A brief description of the sources included in Scope 3 GHG emissions from "other categories":

Waste Water. For purchased goods and services, this is just office paper (66.17). Waste generated in operations is actually -6.99, since the methane is captured and converted to energy. However, this interface does not accept negative numbers.


A copy of the most recent GHG emissions inventory:
---

The website URL where the GHG emissions inventory is posted:
A brief description of the institution’s GHG emissions reduction initiatives, including efforts made during the previous three years:

The college has been upgrading HVAC equipment and lighting, recommissioning equipment, installing automated controls, running a cogeneration plant, and buying 35% Green-e certified energy. The new Student Center was built to LEED Gold standards, and the college has committed to building only LEED Silver or better. The college is moving to 100% Green-e certified energy starting December 2014.


Data source(s) and notes about the submission:

Summer student numbers were not included in the baseline year, as they were not available for the 2004-2005 academic year.


Summer student numbers were not included in the baseline year, as they were not available for the 2004-2005 academic year.

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.