Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 59.34
Liaison Elizabeth MacKenzie
Submission Date July 24, 2018
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

University of Iowa
OP-22: Water Use

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 2.91 / 5.00 David McClain
Manager, Water Utilities
Facilities Management
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Level of ”Physical Risk QUANTITY” for the institution’s main campus as indicated by the World Resources Institute’s Aqueduct Water Risk Atlas:
Medium to High

Total water use (potable and non-potable combined):
Performance Year Baseline Year
Total water use --- 773,112,883 Gallons

Potable water use:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Potable water use 694,173,247 Gallons 749,311,000 Gallons

Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):
Start Date End Date
Performance Year July 1, 2016 June 30, 2017
Baseline Year Jan. 1, 2005 Dec. 31, 2005

A brief description of when and why the water use baseline was adopted:

2005 was the year that the University of Iowa joined the Chicago Climate Exchange (which was disbanded in 2010), and as such, 2005 serves as a baseline for many of the measures of sustainability for the University.


Figures needed to determine "Weighted Campus Users":
Performance Year Baseline Year
Number of students resident on-site 6,651 5,496
Number of employees resident on-site 0 0
Number of other individuals resident on-site and/or staffed hospital beds 0 0
Total full-time equivalent student enrollment 29,288 26,775
Full-time equivalent of employees (staff + faculty) 10,147 8,895
Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education 1,439.60 739.93
Weighted campus users 30,159.30 27,571.55

Potable water use per weighted campus user:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Potable water use per weighted campus user 23,016.89 Gallons 27,176.96 Gallons

Percentage reduction in potable water use per weighted campus user from baseline:
15.31

Gross floor area of building space:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Gross floor area 13,620,153 Gross square feet 11,200,219 Gross square feet

Potable water use per unit of floor area:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Potable water use per unit of floor area 50.97 Gallons per square foot 66.90 Gallons per square foot

Percentage reduction in potable water use per unit of floor area from baseline:
23.82

Does the institution wish to pursue Part 3 of this credit? (reductions in total water use per acre/hectare of vegetated grounds):
Yes

Area of vegetated grounds:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Vegetated grounds 1,617 Acres 1,534 Acres

Total water use (potable + non-potable) per unit of vegetated grounds:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Total water use per unit of vegetated grounds 0 Gallons per acre 503,984.93 Gallons per acre

Percentage reduction in total water use per unit of vegetated grounds from baseline:
---

A brief description of the institution's water-related behavior change initiatives, e.g. initiatives to shift individual attitudes and practices such as signage and competitions:
---

A brief description of the institution's water recovery and reuse initiatives:

Non-potable water is water used for irrigation and other applications that do not require treated water. The University of Iowa has several examples of non-potable water collection, including underground rainwater capture and storage as well as irrigation water drawn from ponds.

In 2009, the University of Iowa Environmental Coalition students built a student garden on Hawkeye Drive that utilizes non-potable water to irrigate its plants.

The University of Iowa Finkbine Golf Course is irrigated by pumping water from an on-site irrigation pond. When the pond falls below suitable levels, water is pumped into the pond via the Jordan Aquifer.

The University of Iowa is currently constructing a new biomedical research building on the west end of campus. The new building will employ a new 20,000 gallon water storage tank that will store rain water for irrigation. Rain water from gutters and roof drains will be channeled into the storage tank via underground piping.


A brief description of the institution's initiatives to replace plumbing fixtures, fittings, appliances, equipment, and systems with water-efficient alternatives (e.g. building retrofits):
---

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:

Part 3 of this credit uses baseline 2017 instead of 2015 for vegetated area. This is due to availability of data. We expect that the difference between the 2015 and 2017 figures are negligible because total campus growth is very slow (less than 1% per year or 200,000 square feet on average)


Part 3 of this credit uses baseline 2017 instead of 2015 for vegetated area. This is due to availability of data. We expect that the difference between the 2015 and 2017 figures are negligible because total campus growth is very slow (less than 1% per year or 200,000 square feet on average)

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.