| Overall Rating | Platinum - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 85.48 |
| Liaison | Emmanuelle Jodoin |
| Submission Date | Dec. 6, 2019 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
Université de Sherbrooke
OP-5: Building Energy Consumption
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
4.53 / 6.00 |
Véronique
Bisaillon Sustainable Development Education Advisor Office of the Vice-President, Administration and Sustainable Development |
Figures needed to determine total building energy consumption:
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Grid-purchased electricity | 257,383 MMBtu | 144,395 MMBtu |
| Electricity from on-site renewables | 2,135 MMBtu | 0 MMBtu |
| District steam/hot water (sourced from offsite) | 5,558 MMBtu | 28,974 MMBtu |
| Energy from all other sources (e.g., natural gas, fuel oil, propane/LPG, district chilled water, coal/coke, biomass) | 119,312 MMBtu | 241,874 MMBtu |
| Total | 384,388 MMBtu | 415,243 MMBtu |
Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or 3-year periods):
| Start Date | End Date | |
| Performance Year | May 1, 2017 | April 30, 2018 |
| Baseline Year | May 1, 2002 | April 30, 2003 |
A brief description of when and why the building energy consumption baseline was adopted (e.g. in sustainability plans and policies or in the context of other reporting obligations):
The year 2002-2003 is the year from which the first energy efficiency measures were performed and coincides with the hiring of a director responsible of this matter at the University.
Gross floor area of building space:
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Gross floor area of building space | 360,054 Gross square meters | 232,147 Gross square meters |
Source-site ratio for grid-purchased electricity:
Total building energy consumption per unit of floor area:
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Site energy | 0.10 MMBtu per square meter | 0.17 MMBtu per square meter |
| Source energy | 0.17 MMBtu per square meter | 0.23 MMBtu per square meter |
Percentage reduction in total building energy consumption (source energy) per unit of floor area from baseline:
Degree days, performance year (base 65 °F / 18 °C):
| Degree days (see help icon above) | |
| Heating degree days | 3,837 Degree-Days (°C) |
| Cooling degree days | 472 Degree-Days (°C) |
Floor area of energy intensive space, performance year:
| Floor Area | |
| Laboratory space | 101,141 Square meters |
| Healthcare space | 0 Square meters |
| Other energy intensive space |
EUI-adjusted floor area, performance year:
Building energy consumption (site energy) per unit of EUI-adjusted floor area per degree day, performance year:
Documentation (e.g. spreadsheet or utility records) to support the performance year energy consumption figures reported above:
A brief description of the institution's initiatives to shift individual attitudes and practices in regard to energy efficiency (e.g. outreach and education efforts):
A brief description of energy use standards and controls employed by the institution (e.g. building temperature standards, occupancy and vacancy sensors):
A brief description of Light Emitting Diode (LED) lighting and other energy-efficient lighting strategies employed by the institution:
A brief description of passive solar heating, geothermal systems, and related strategies employed by the institution:
A brief description of co-generation employed by the institution, e.g. combined heat and power (CHP):
The University's reference document for expressing data on a common unit is Energy Star's "Source Energy" technical document.
For more details, please see:
https://portfoliomanager.energystar.gov/pdf/reference/Source%20Energy.pdf?ccac-8037
A brief description of the institution's initiatives to replace energy-consuming appliances, equipment and systems with high efficiency alternatives (e.g. building re-commissioning or retrofit programs):
The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
1. The significant reduction in “District steam/hot water” AND “Energy from all other sources” between the performance year and the baseline year is correct and attributable to the following:
The period from 2002-2003 to 2010-2011 was a period of growth for the University, both in terms of surface area and student enrolment. The University took advantage of this opportunity to deploy an ambitious energy efficiency program on its campuses. Through these projects, the University aimed both to reduce energy consumption while reducing the associated GHG emissions. Between 2002-2003 and 2017-2018, some 70 energy efficiency projects or measures were carried out on the three campuses, with investments totaling some $23 million. These projects consisted, for example, in installing optimization and heat recovery systems such as heat pumps, equipment replacement (more efficient boilers, windows, energy-efficient lighting), controls optimization and recommissioning of mechanical systems, conversion of boilers to hydroelectricity and geothermal systems. In addition, construction and major renovation projects also incorporated high-performance energy efficiency measures. Overall, it can be observed that the reduction in energy consumption and the reduction in steam consumption have been achieved by making optimal use of hydroelectricity. Thus, while energy from fossil sources and offsite steam have been reduced, hydroelectricity consumption has increased. All of these measures explain how total energy consumption was reduced.
Offsite steam consumption relates to the Health Campus only: steam is purchased from the Centre intégré universitaire de santé et de services sociaux (CIUSSS) (the Integrated University Health and Social Services Centre). The decrease in steam consumption on that campus can be explained by the implementation of various energy efficiency projects such as the addition of heat pumps for heat recovery and more specifically three projects carried out in 2016-2017: optimization of the energy plant, optimization of the steam production capacity and the installation of an electric boiler. In doing so, the University reduced both its energy needs and its offsite steam consumption.
2. Source-site ratio for grid-purchased electricity
As indicated above, the University's reference document for expressing data on a common unit is Energy Star's "Source Energy" technical document: (https://portfoliomanager.energystar.gov/pdf/reference/Source%20Energy.pdf?ccac-8037). Based on the latter, the Electricity (Grid Purchase) Canadian ratio is 1.96. (vs 2.05 as used by STARS).
It is worth noting that the source-site ratio for grid-purchased electricity was calculated for the specific case of the Province of Québec, which energy portfolio differs considerably from the rest of the country (Canada). The Interdisciplinary Research Laboratory in Life Cycle Assessment and Circular Economy (LIRIDE), based at the Université de Sherbrooke, performed the calculation using Simapro software, the Ecoinvent database V3.5, including the cumulative energy demand impact method. In this context, it established the ratio to be 1.1757 in 2018 and 1.2089 in 2002. Hence, having used such ratios, the institution’s reduction to its total building energy consumption would have shown it to be higher.
1. The significant reduction in “District steam/hot water” AND “Energy from all other sources” between the performance year and the baseline year is correct and attributable to the following:
The period from 2002-2003 to 2010-2011 was a period of growth for the University, both in terms of surface area and student enrolment. The University took advantage of this opportunity to deploy an ambitious energy efficiency program on its campuses. Through these projects, the University aimed both to reduce energy consumption while reducing the associated GHG emissions. Between 2002-2003 and 2017-2018, some 70 energy efficiency projects or measures were carried out on the three campuses, with investments totaling some $23 million. These projects consisted, for example, in installing optimization and heat recovery systems such as heat pumps, equipment replacement (more efficient boilers, windows, energy-efficient lighting), controls optimization and recommissioning of mechanical systems, conversion of boilers to hydroelectricity and geothermal systems. In addition, construction and major renovation projects also incorporated high-performance energy efficiency measures. Overall, it can be observed that the reduction in energy consumption and the reduction in steam consumption have been achieved by making optimal use of hydroelectricity. Thus, while energy from fossil sources and offsite steam have been reduced, hydroelectricity consumption has increased. All of these measures explain how total energy consumption was reduced.
Offsite steam consumption relates to the Health Campus only: steam is purchased from the Centre intégré universitaire de santé et de services sociaux (CIUSSS) (the Integrated University Health and Social Services Centre). The decrease in steam consumption on that campus can be explained by the implementation of various energy efficiency projects such as the addition of heat pumps for heat recovery and more specifically three projects carried out in 2016-2017: optimization of the energy plant, optimization of the steam production capacity and the installation of an electric boiler. In doing so, the University reduced both its energy needs and its offsite steam consumption.
2. Source-site ratio for grid-purchased electricity
As indicated above, the University's reference document for expressing data on a common unit is Energy Star's "Source Energy" technical document: (https://portfoliomanager.energystar.gov/pdf/reference/Source%20Energy.pdf?ccac-8037). Based on the latter, the Electricity (Grid Purchase) Canadian ratio is 1.96. (vs 2.05 as used by STARS).
It is worth noting that the source-site ratio for grid-purchased electricity was calculated for the specific case of the Province of Québec, which energy portfolio differs considerably from the rest of the country (Canada). The Interdisciplinary Research Laboratory in Life Cycle Assessment and Circular Economy (LIRIDE), based at the Université de Sherbrooke, performed the calculation using Simapro software, the Ecoinvent database V3.5, including the cumulative energy demand impact method. In this context, it established the ratio to be 1.1757 in 2018 and 1.2089 in 2002. Hence, having used such ratios, the institution’s reduction to its total building energy consumption would have shown it to be higher.
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.