| Overall Rating | Gold - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 65.19 |
| Liaison | Justin Mog |
| Submission Date | Feb. 13, 2016 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
University of Louisville
OP-1: Greenhouse Gas Emissions
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
4.70 / 10.00 |
Justin
Mog Assistant to the Provost for Sustainability Initiatives Office of the Provost |
Does the institution's GHG emissions inventory include all Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions?:
Does the institution's GHG emissions inventory include all Scope 3 GHG emissions from any of the following categories?:
| Yes or No | |
| Business travel | Yes |
| Commuting | Yes |
| Purchased goods and services | Yes |
| Capital goods | No |
| Fuel- and energy-related activities not included in Scope 1 or Scope 2 | Yes |
| Waste generated in operations | Yes |
Does the institution's GHG emissions inventory include Scope 3 emissions from other categories?:
A brief description of the methodology and/or tool used to complete the GHG emissions inventory:
Estimated emissions were calculated using the UNH (formerly Clean Air-Cool Planet®) Campus Carbon Calculator v8.0.utilizing annual facility data. The calculator was used for university data collection, storage and conversion into a common greenhouse gas emission unit, metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (MT eCO2). In the conversion process, the calculator uses scientifically-based factors for specific activities leading to GHG emissions (e.g., commuter miles traveled, tons of waste disposed, gallons of fuel burned, etc.). These conversion factors have been modified as more is learned about the global warming effects of various greenhouse gases.
Has the GHG emissions inventory been validated internally by personnel who are independent of the GHG accounting and reporting process and/or verified by an independent, external third party?:
A brief description of the internal and/or external verification process:
The data was verified by personnel across the university who are independent of the GHG accounting and reporting process. The emissions data was peer-reviewed by a large group of staff, faculty, and students as follows: Report Prepared By: Project Coordination, Narrative, Data Collection & Analysis: Justin Mog, PhD Assistant to the Provost for Sustainability Initiatives Lead Data Consultant: Teresa Rutledge Assistant Vice President for Business Affairs Commuting Data Analysis: Benjamin Leamon Graduate Research Assistant in Urban & Public Affairs Data Gathering: Laura Krauser Sustainability Council Student Intern The preparers of this report would like to acknowledge the work of all of those who aided in the development of this document, including but not limited to: Brian Barnes, Director, EcoReps Program & Composting Operations Russ Barnett, Director, Kentucky Institute for the Environment & Sustainable Development Shari Barrow, Senior Analyst, Institutional Research Aaron Boggs, Assistant Director, Physical Plant Maintenance and Renovations Brad Bohannon, Business Rental Sales Manager, Enterprise Stephen Bottorff, Mechanical Systems Technician for HSC, Physical Plant Glen Todd, Interim Assistant Vice President for Facilities Kenneth Dietz, Director of University Planning, Design & Construction Robert Goldstein, Vice Provost, Institutional Research Geoffrey Hobin, Capital Projects Administrator, Transit Authority of River City (TARC) Virginia Hosono, Associate Director, Office of Study Abroad and International Travel Paul Hoza, Chemical Regulatory Specialist, Dept. of Environmental Health & Safety George Kirwan, Assistant Director or Engineering, Physical Plant Kyle McWhirter, PanAm Travel Curtis Monroe, Assistant Director of Purchasing/Materials Management Peggy Moore, Space Coordinator, University Planning, Design & Construction Mitchell Payne, Associate Vice President for Business Affairs Teresa Rutledge, Assistant Vice President for Business Affairs Kerry Schmidt, Director of Finance & Operations, Provost Units David Simpson, Chair & Professor of Urban & Public Affairs, Chair of Sustainability Council Robin Stewart, Assistant Director, Contract Administration & Procurement Services Dennis Sullivan, Assistant Director, Dept. of Environmental Health & Safety
Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions::
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Scope 1 GHG emissions from stationary combustion | 36,513 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 42,267 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Scope 1 GHG emissions from other sources | 1,468.60 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 2,495 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Scope 2 GHG emissions from purchased electricity | 87,499 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 114,784 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Scope 2 GHG emissions from other sources | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
Figures needed to determine total carbon offsets::
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Institution-catalyzed carbon offsets generated | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Carbon sequestration due to land that the institution manages specifically for sequestration | 626 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 626 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Carbon storage from on-site composting | 25 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 15 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Third-party verified carbon offsets purchased | 6.66 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
A brief description of the institution-catalyzed carbon offsets program:
n/a
A brief description of the carbon sequestration program and reporting protocol used:
This is an estimate of the carbon sequestration resulting from the preservation of trees on Belknap campus and at UofL's mostly forested 200-acre Horner Conservation Property (also referred to as the Moore Observatory). We based this estimate on an average of 10 tons per hectare per year and 50 pounds per tree per year, found at http://www.plant-trees.org/resources/Calculating%20CO2%20Sequestration%20by%20Trees.pdf
A brief description of the composting and carbon storage program:
UofL began on-site composting of pre-consumer, plant-based food waste from its Belknap campus dining facilities in July 2010. The composting program involves employee and student volunteers and was designed to be educational and coordinated with the campus Garden Commons project which needs a steady supply of compost.
The project continues today as a service opportunity associated with UofL's EcoReps Program and has evolved into a community composting partnership with our neighbors. Read more about the project here: http://louisville.edu/sustainability/operations/composting.html
A brief description of the purchased carbon offsets, including third party verifier(s) and contract timeframes:
In 2015, UofL’s Brandeis School of Law took the step of becoming the first unit on campus to voluntarily offset travel carbon emissions through the Appalachian Carbon Partnership (appalachiancarbonpartnership.org). Through a simple “flat tax” of $1 per trip to be invested in protecting small landholder forests in Appalachia, the Law School was able to pioneer the practice of offsetting carbon from university travel.
The Appalachian Carbon Partnership (ACP), a project of the Mountain Association for Community Economic Development (MACED), is a powerful new model for promoting the practice of sustainable forest management on private, non-industrial forestland. This program is the first in Central Appalachia to compensate forest landowners for the carbon sequestered by their sustainably managed forests, linking the global issue of climate change directly to local sustainable development in Central Appalachia.
The ACP's goal is to create a community of landowners and partners that works together to increase:
The practice of sustainable forest management.
The ecological health and economic value of forests in Central Appalachia.
Wealth for forested communities in a region typically dominated by extractive industries.
Figures needed to determine “Weighted Campus Users”::
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Number of residential students | 5,224 | 3,161 |
| Number of residential employees | 0 | 0 |
| Number of in-patient hospital beds | 0 | 0 |
| Full-time equivalent enrollment | 18,779 | 16,483 |
| Full-time equivalent of employees | 6,342 | 5,949 |
| Full-time equivalent of distance education students | 1,525 | 0 |
Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):
| Start Date | End Date | |
| Performance Year | July 1, 2014 | June 30, 2015 |
| Baseline Year | July 1, 2007 | June 30, 2008 |
A brief description of when and why the GHG emissions baseline was adopted:
The baseline was created during our first GHG emissions inventory conducted in 2009-2010. It involved three years of prior data and was as far back as we had reliable data.
Gross floor area of building space, performance year:
Floor area of energy intensive building space, performance year:
| Floor Area | |
| Laboratory space | 608,702 Square feet |
| Healthcare space | 471,613 Square feet |
| Other energy intensive space | 109,954 Square feet |
Scope 3 GHG emissions, performance year::
| Emissions | |
| Business travel | 10,385.60 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Commuting | 44,969 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Purchased goods and services | 503.90 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Capital goods | --- |
| Fuel- and energy-related activities not included in Scope 1 or Scope 2 | 5,408.10 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Waste generated in operations | 559.90 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Other categories (please specify below) | 3,308.90 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
A brief description of the sources included in Scope 3 GHG emissions from "other categories":
Study Abroad Air Travel
A copy of the most recent GHG emissions inventory:
The website URL where the GHG emissions inventory is posted:
A brief description of the institution’s GHG emissions reduction initiatives, including efforts made during the previous three years:
Our plan for making progress toward climate neutrality is dynamic and multifaceted. We recognize that sustainability demands progress on multiple fronts and that lasting change cannot be achieved without coordinated efforts campus-wide. As such, we propose taking a variety of steps to lead the University of Louisville down a path toward climate neutrality with a focus on the following initiatives: green purchasing; energy conservation and efficiency; renewable energy; carbon sequestration; master planning; green building design; composting and horticultural practices; behavior change; recycling; transportation; food; and carbon offsets. Our full Climate Action Plan details over 175 individual steps we plan to take across all of these areas over the next four decades. We have prioritized these actions into short-term (by 2020), mid-term (by 2030) and long-term (by 2050) steps on the way to climate neutrality. The university intends to continually monitor progress and revisit and reevaluate these plans as the years pass in a spirit of adaptive management. Our Climate Action Plan is available at http://rs.acupcc.org/cap/700/
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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.