| Overall Rating | Platinum |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 87.91 |
| Liaison | Pierre Lemay |
| Submission Date | Dec. 19, 2022 |
Université Laval
OP-2: Greenhouse Gas Emissions
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
8.00 / 8.00 |
Pierre
Lemay Development Advisor Office of the Vice Rector, External and International Affairs and Health |
Gross Scope 1 and Scope 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions:
| Performance year | Baseline year | |
| Gross Scope 1 GHG emissions from stationary combustion | 21,161.20 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 35,197 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Gross Scope 1 GHG emissions from other sources | 582.40 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 599 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Gross Scope 2 GHG emissions from imported electricity | 263 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 706 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 | 22,006.60 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 36,502 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
Figures needed to determine net carbon sinks:
| Performance year | Baseline year | |
| Third-party verified carbon offsets purchased | 1,889 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Institution-catalyzed carbon offsets generated | 20,118 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 | 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 | 22,007 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):
The Montmorency Forest is the largest teaching and research forest in the world, totalling 397 km2. Since 1964, Université Laval students have had the opportunity to learn about good practices in forestry, forest management, forest protection, and logging, while researchers have been able to conduct studies in this open sky laboratory. As a carbon sink, the forest plays a key role in the university’s GHG reduction strategy. It can absorb an average of 14,413 tons of CO2 equivalent per year. This calculation, which is based on an approach validated by a scientific committee, is used by the university for its carbon footprint assessment.
For two fixed five-year periods (from 2014-2015 to 2018-2019, and from 2019-2020 to 2023-2024), the Séminaire de Québec has offered the university carbon credits equivalent to 5,705 tonnes of CO2 per year. The carbon credits are generated by the additional amount of carbon stored and retained in the forest biomass due to the reduction of its annual forest harvest on a portion of the Seigneurie de Beaupré. In order to generate this volume of carbon credits, the Séminaire has created two conservation areas on Seigneurie de Beaupré, which it has agreed to exclude from its production by halting forest harvesting operations in these two areas.
In order to achieve campus carbon neutrality, Université Laval purchased carbon credits on the market. One of the suppliers is Ecotierra, a company based in Sherbrooke that generates carbon credits by developing high quality forestry and agricultural projects with major socio-economic impacts for local populations as well as positive environmental impacts. All carbon credits purchased are third-party verified and certified under the VCS & Gold standard.
Adjusted net Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions:
| Performance year | Baseline year | |
| Adjusted net GHG emissions | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 36,502 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 | May 1, 2020 | Jan. 1, 2006 |
| End date | April 30, 2021 | Dec. 31, 2006 |
A brief description of when and why the GHG emissions baseline was adopted:
N/A
Figures needed to determine “Weighted Campus Users”:
| Performance year | Baseline year | |
| Number of students resident on-site | 2,300 | 2,300 |
| Number of employees resident on-site | 0 | 0 |
| Number of other individuals resident on-site | 0 | 0 |
| Total full-time equivalent student enrollment | 38,210 | 30,160 |
| Full-time equivalent of employees | 5,442 | 5,016 |
| Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education | 14,768 | 715 |
| Weighted Campus Users | 22,238 | 26,420.75 |
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 | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 1.38 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 | 2,646,695 Square feet |
| Healthcare space | 0 Square feet |
| Other energy intensive space | 326,523 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:
The entire amount of electricity consumed at ULaval comes from Hydro-Québec network. The gross quantities of electricity reported are taken from the annual report submitted to the Quebec Ministry of Education. This compilation is based on Hydro-Québec's electricity bills. The emission factor used for purchased electricity differs from year to year, according to the proportion of electricity available on Hydro-Quebec Network coming from hydroelectricity, nuclear fission, combustion and/or green energies each year. This factor is taken from the Canadian National Inventory Report.
Moreover, the reason why gross scope 2 GHG emissions from purchased electricity is low relatively compared to other institution with a size similar, is because Hydro-Québec produces mostly hydroelectricity. Hydroelectricity generates significantly less GHG emissions compared to other electricity sources commonly found in the US.
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:
The total full-time equivalent student enrollment in OP 2 differ from IC 3. The discrepancies are due to the referential year. For IC-3, we presented the most recent data (2021-2022). However, for OP-2, because the most recent data we had for GHG emissions were for 2020-2021, we also used full-time equivalent data of 2020-2021.
Same for "Full-time equivalent of employees" and "Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education".
The total full-time equivalent student enrollment in OP 2 differ from IC 3. The discrepancies are due to the referential year. For IC-3, we presented the most recent data (2021-2022). However, for OP-2, because the most recent data we had for GHG emissions were for 2020-2021, we also used full-time equivalent data of 2020-2021.
Same for "Full-time equivalent of employees" and "Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education".
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.