Overall Rating Gold
Overall Score 76.52
Liaison Maria Kirrane
Submission Date July 28, 2022

STARS v2.2

University College Cork - National University of Ireland, Cork
OP-2: Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 3.94 / 8.00 Niall Dunphy
Dr
Cleaner Production Promotion Unit
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Gross Scope 1 and Scope 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions:
Performance year Baseline year
Gross Scope 1 GHG emissions from stationary combustion 5,709.90 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 4,624 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Gross Scope 1 GHG emissions from other sources 42.50 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 220.70 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Gross Scope 2 GHG emissions from imported electricity 14,296.90 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 11,848.30 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Gross Scope 2 GHG emissions from imported thermal energy 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 5,497.70 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Total 20,049.30 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 22,190.70 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):
---

Adjusted net Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions:
Performance year Baseline year
Adjusted net GHG emissions 20,049.30 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 22,190.70 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 Sept. 30, 2017 Sept. 30, 2008
End date Oct. 1, 2018 Oct. 1, 2009

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

UCC's carbon footprint was previously calculated in 08/09 and 11/12.


Figures needed to determine “Weighted Campus Users”:
Performance year Baseline year
Number of students resident on-site 0 0
Number of employees resident on-site 0 0
Number of other individuals resident on-site 0 0
Total full-time equivalent student enrollment 18,464 16,119
Full-time equivalent of employees 2,696.72 2,674
Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education 48 117
Weighted Campus Users 15,834.54 14,007

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 1.27 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 1.58 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Percentage reduction in adjusted net Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions per weighted campus user from baseline:
20.08

Gross floor area of building space, performance year:
282,364 Gross square meters

Floor area of energy intensive building space, performance year:
Floor area
Laboratory space 54,513 Square meters
Healthcare space 12,891 Square meters
Other energy intensive space 16,385 Square meters

EUI-adjusted floor area, performance year:
433,557 Gross square meters

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

A brief description of the institution’s GHG emissions reduction initiatives:

UCC was the first university in the world to become IS050001 accredited for energy management systems, this provides the framework for reduction of energy consumption over time.

For a detailed discussion of GHG emission reduction initiatives please see discussions on energy and transport management (OP5, OP6, OP17)


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:

Reference year is academic year 2017-2018. This is outside of the 3 year reporting framework due to the impacts of Covid. The University was due to recalculate our carbon footprint in 2020, however given the Covid lockdown situation this would not have been appropriate. Irish Universities operated mainly online from March 2020 to January 2022, therefore the next appropriate time to undertake a carbon footprint measurement (in order to be able to make useful comparisons) will be for AY 22/23.

Floor area metrics and student and staff FTEs differ from those provided in PRE-4 and PRE-5 as the reference year differs

Please see attached supporting document "Toward a Climate Action Plan for UCC" for a detailed discussion on measuring UCC GHG emissions.


Reference year is academic year 2017-2018. This is outside of the 3 year reporting framework due to the impacts of Covid. The University was due to recalculate our carbon footprint in 2020, however given the Covid lockdown situation this would not have been appropriate. Irish Universities operated mainly online from March 2020 to January 2022, therefore the next appropriate time to undertake a carbon footprint measurement (in order to be able to make useful comparisons) will be for AY 22/23.

Floor area metrics and student and staff FTEs differ from those provided in PRE-4 and PRE-5 as the reference year differs

Please see attached supporting document "Toward a Climate Action Plan for UCC" for a detailed discussion on measuring UCC GHG emissions.

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.