| Overall Rating | Gold |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 65.17 |
| Liaison | Lisa Mitten |
| Submission Date | March 2, 2023 |
State University of New York at New Paltz
OP-2: Greenhouse Gas Emissions
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
5.37 / 8.00 |
Lisa
Mitten Campus Sustainability Coordinator Office of Campus Sustainability |
Gross Scope 1 and Scope 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions:
| Performance year | Baseline year | |
| Gross Scope 1 GHG emissions from stationary combustion | 6,450.28 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 13,239 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Gross Scope 1 GHG emissions from other sources | 242.45 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 395 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Gross Scope 2 GHG emissions from imported electricity | 4,697.44 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 12,813 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 | 11,390.17 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 26,447 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
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 |
A brief description of the carbon sinks, including vendor, project source, verification program and contract timeframes (as applicable):
Not applicable
Adjusted net Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions:
| Performance year | Baseline year | |
| Adjusted net GHG emissions | 11,390.17 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 26,447 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):
| Performance year | Baseline year | |
| Start date | Jan. 1, 2021 | Jan. 1, 2003 |
| End date | Dec. 31, 2021 | Dec. 31, 2003 |
A brief description of when and why the GHG emissions baseline was adopted:
2003 was adopted as the baseline year because it is the earliest year that we have reliable utility data for a calendar year. Additionally, it was the same baseline year adopted in previous STARS reports.
Figures needed to determine “Weighted Campus Users”:
| Performance year | Baseline year | |
| Number of students resident on-site | 2,473 | 2,798 |
| Number of employees resident on-site | 16 | 16 |
| Number of other individuals resident on-site | 0 | 0 |
| Total full-time equivalent student enrollment | 6,421 | 6,562.10 |
| Full-time equivalent of employees | 1,054 | 1,041.33 |
| Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education | 204 | 0 |
| Weighted Campus Users | 6,075.50 | 6,406.07 |
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 | 1.87 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 4.13 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
Percentage reduction in adjusted net Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions per weighted campus user from baseline:
Gross floor area of building space, performance year:
Floor area of energy intensive building space, performance year:
| Floor area | |
| Laboratory space | 244,679 Square feet |
| Healthcare space | 0 Square feet |
| Other energy intensive space | 34,578 Square feet |
EUI-adjusted floor area, performance year:
Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions per unit of EUI-adjusted floor area, performance year:
A brief description of the institution’s GHG emissions reduction initiatives:
SUNY New Paltz's reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from 2003 to 2021 is attributed to the following actions:
- Switching from distillate oil to natural gas at the Central Heating Plant. This change occurred in 2006. Prior to 2003, the primary heating fuel was residual oil (#5-6). We would have used these years as a baseline, however we did not have accurate electricity data for those years, so chose 2013 as a baseline.
- Adding new rooftop solar photovoltaic arrays (generating approximately 256,000 kwh of electricity in 2010)
- Upgrading from less efficient lighting (ie. incandescent and metal halide) to more efficient lighting (fluorescents and LEDs) for all exterior lighting and one-third of interior spaces
- Ongoing energy management initiatives include energy monitoring through building submetering, winter session setback, and ongoing conservation through efficient building scheduling. We regularly monitor class schedules and adjust building heating and cooling schedules to unoccupied mode when possible.
All of the above changes reduced the campus' greenhouse gas emissions, based on SIMAP calculations.
- Adding variable drives to the Central Heating Plant
- Modulating Central Heating Plant high temp hot water loop temperatures based on outdoor air temperatures, especially during the shoulder seasons
- Upgrading control valves campus-wide to properly regular and control the amount of high temp hot water entering each building
- Upgrading building control systems and adopting single-screens to view, operate, and control heating systems more efficiently and effectively
Website URL where information about the institution's GHG emissions is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
Please note that the campus was unable to find residential student counts for 2003, so we used the same numbers as for 2013: 2,798 students.
Also note that we did not use PRE-05 data, which is associated with the 2022-23 academic year. Since this credit uses GHG emissions data for 2021, we used separate data for the fall of 2021.
Please note that the campus was unable to find residential student counts for 2003, so we used the same numbers as for 2013: 2,798 students.
Also note that we did not use PRE-05 data, which is associated with the 2022-23 academic year. Since this credit uses GHG emissions data for 2021, we used separate data for the fall of 2021.
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.