Overall Rating Silver
Overall Score 55.03
Liaison Sara McIntyre
Submission Date Aug. 10, 2022

STARS v2.2

Sewanee - The University of the South
OP-2: Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 4.21 / 8.00 Sara McIntyre
Sustainability Coordinator
OESS
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions

Gross GHG emissions

Gross Scope 1 and Scope 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions:
Performance year Baseline year
Gross Scope 1 GHG emissions from stationary combustion 2,864 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 3,013 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Gross Scope 1 GHG emissions from other sources 793 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 708 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Gross Scope 2 GHG emissions from imported electricity 7,202.17 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 11,227 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Gross Scope 2 GHG emissions from imported thermal energy 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Total 10,859.17 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 14,948 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Carbon sinks

Figures needed to determine net carbon sinks:
Performance year Baseline year
Third-party verified carbon offsets purchased 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Institution-catalyzed carbon offsets generated 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
Carbon storage from non-additional sequestration 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent ---
Carbon sold or transferred 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Net carbon sinks 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

If total performance year carbon sinks are greater than zero, provide:

A brief description of the carbon sinks, including vendor, project source, verification program and contract timeframes (as applicable):
N/A

Adjusted net GHG emissions

Adjusted net Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions:
Performance year Baseline year
Adjusted net GHG emissions 10,859.17 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 14,948 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Performance and baseline periods

Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):
Performance year Baseline year
Start date July 1, 2018 Jan. 1, 2008
End date June 30, 2019 Dec. 31, 2008

A brief description of when and why the GHG emissions baseline was adopted:
2008 is the first year after the University's adoption of the President's Climate Agreement and the first year that Sewanee measured/reported its GHG emissions.

Part 1. Reduction in GHG emissions per person

Weighted campus users

Figures needed to determine “Weighted Campus Users”:
Performance year Baseline year
Number of students resident on-site 1,649 1,480
Number of employees resident on-site 5 18
Number of other individuals resident on-site 0 0
Total full-time equivalent student enrollment 1,775 1,538
Full-time equivalent of employees 726 548
Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education 0 0
Weighted Campus Users 2,289.25 1,939

Metrics used in scoring for Part 1

Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions per weighted campus user:
Performance year Baseline year
Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions per weighted campus user 4.74 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 7.71 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Percentage reduction in adjusted net Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions per weighted campus user from baseline:
38.47

Part 2. GHG emissions per unit of floor area

Performance year floor area

Gross floor area of building space, performance year:
1,526,858 Gross square feet

Floor area of energy intensive building space, performance year:
Floor area
Laboratory space 28,341 Square feet
Healthcare space 0 Square feet
Other energy intensive space 49,080 Square feet

EUI-adjusted floor area, performance year:
1,632,620 Gross square feet

Metric used in scoring for Part 2

Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions per unit of EUI-adjusted floor area, performance year:
0.01 MtCO2e per square foot

A brief description of the institution’s GHG emissions reduction initiatives:
The University of the South has a Sustainability Master Plan (SMP) that lays out Institutional Goals and Operational Strategies; of which, emissions reductions is a large portion. http://www.sewanee.edu/provost/2013-sustainability-master-plan/

The University has created a revolving green fund to spur operational efficiencies and continual improvement. Gains from this are reported via The US Department of Energy's Better Building Challenge https://betterbuildingsinitiative.energy.gov/partners/university-south
These include: Lighting upgrades, digital thermostats, a massive water cooler/heater upgrade and other minor upgrades (fixtures).

Additionally, the University has laid out its path to Carbon Neutrality via Second Nature and the Climate Action Plan http://reporting.secondnature.org/dashboard/dashboard/##3715

Both plans are currently in the final phases of revaluation (2021-present) and are being combined into a single Climate Action Plan.

There is currently a 3 pronged approach that includes: Building efficiency measures, investing in renewable energy and carbon sequestration via the Domain forest. Per the above info, you can see that the University is working hard at increasing building efficiencies. Additionally, the University has invested in feasibility studies for solar and biomass energy sources and is continuing its search for optimal renewable energy. Finally, the University is continuing to evaluate the use of some, or all, of the Domain forest (>10,000 acres) as sequestration and is committed to evaluating the first two prior to fully supporting this route.

Emissions outliers due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the resultant operational and academic chaos exist for most of the 3-year period covered by this report. Generally, speaking, efforts were made to choose performance years that were unaffected by the pandemic in order to give the best "business as usual" snapshot.

Website URL where information about the institution's GHG emissions is available:
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Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
Most data was delivered and crunched by the University Energy Specialist with the Sustainability Coordinator working at her elbow in close proximity.

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.