Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 73.04
Liaison Troy Goodnough
Submission Date March 30, 2018
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

University of Minnesota, Morris
OP-1: Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 5.15 / 10.00 Troy Goodnough
Sustainability Director
Office of Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Part 1 

Has the institution conducted a GHG emissions inventory that includes all Scope 1 and 2 emissions? :
Yes

Does the institution’s GHG emissions inventory include all, some or none of its Scope 3 GHG emissions from the following categories?:
All, Some, or None
Business travel None
Commuting None
Purchased goods and services None
Capital goods None
Waste generated in operations None
Fuel- and energy-related activities not included in Scope 1 or Scope 2 None
Other categories None

A copy of the most recent GHG emissions inventory:
A brief description of the methodology and/or tool used to complete the GHG emissions inventory, including how the institution accounted for each category of Scope 3 emissions reported above:
The Office of Sustainability solicits information from campus stakeholders about energy use, etc. This data is entered into an in-house spreadsheet and GHG emissions are calculated accordingly. We are not including Scope 3 emissions in the STARS survey. The link provided from the Second Nature screenshot shows our publicly available Scope 1 and 2 data.

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?:
Yes

A brief description of the internal and/or external verification process:
There are two main verification paths we have for our SCOPE I and II data. Scope I greenhouse gas emissions are mostly generated from the central heating/cooling plant on-campus. Data from the central plant are used to provide the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency with criteria pollutant information. So, this data is verified by MPCA. Scope II GHG emissions are mostly from purchased electricity. This electricity is carefully metered by the local utility -- therefore, total electricity usage for the campus is well-known and is billed accordingly. These are the main data sources to compose our SCOPE I and II GHG footprint. Additionally, we worked with a 3rd party to develop a carbon master plan. During this process, we were able to confirm similar conclusions about our carbon footprint and steps to reduce it.

Documentation to support the internal and/or external verification process:
---

Does the institution wish to pursue Part 2 and Part 3 of this credit? (reductions in Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions):
Yes

Part 2 

Gross Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Gross Scope 1 GHG emissions from stationary combustion 6,150 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 5,233 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Gross Scope 1 GHG emissions from other sources 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Gross Scope 2 GHG emissions from purchased electricity 3,005 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 8,239 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Gross Scope 2 GHG emissions from other sources 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Total 9,155 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 13,472 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

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

A brief description of when and why the GHG emissions baseline was adopted (e.g. in sustainability plans and policies or in the context of other reporting obligations):
---

Figures needed to determine total carbon offsets:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Third-party verified carbon offsets purchased (exclude purchased RECs/GOs) 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 sequestration due to land that the institution manages specifically for sequestration 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 offsets included above for which the emissions reductions have been sold or transferred by the institution 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Net carbon offsets 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

If total performance year carbon offsets are greater than zero, provide:

A brief description of the offsets in each category reported above, including vendor, project source, verification program and contract timeframes (as applicable):
---

The reporting fields in the table below are reserved for institutions that have NOT already accounted for renewable energy purchases (including RECs and GOs) in their Scope 2 GHG emissions calculations. Other institutions - including all SIMAP users - should report zero ('0') to avoid double-counting. 

Emissions reductions attributable to Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) or Guarantee of Origin (GO) purchases:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Emissions reductions attributable to REC/GO purchases 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

A brief description of the purchased RECs/GOs including vendor, project source and verification program:
---

Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions 9,155 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 13,472 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Figures needed to determine “Weighted Campus Users”:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Number of students resident on-site 938 758
Number of employees resident on-site 5 0
Number of other individuals resident on-site and/or staffed hospital beds 0 0
Total full-time equivalent student enrollment 1,688 1,673
Full-time equivalent of employees (staff + faculty) 384.70 395
Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education 0 0
Weighted campus users 1,790.28 1,740.50

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 5.11 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 7.74 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Percentage reduction in adjusted net Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions per weighted campus user from baseline:
33.93

Part 3

Gross floor area of building space, performance year:
80,069.94 Gross square meters

Floor area of energy intensive building space, performance year:
Floor Area
Laboratory space 7,385.79 Square meters
Healthcare space 0 Square meters
Other energy intensive space 4,812.38 Square meters

EUI-adjusted floor area, performance year:
99,653.89 Gross square meters

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

Optional Fields 

Scope 3 GHG emissions, performance year:
Emissions
Business travel ---
Commuting ---
Purchased goods and services ---
Capital goods ---
Fuel- and energy-related activities not included in Scope 1 or Scope 2 ---
Waste generated in operations ---
Other categories ---

A brief description of the institution’s GHG emissions reduction initiatives, including efforts made during the previous three years:
1) The Green Prairie Community residence hall was awarded LEED Gold (2014) 2) A 20kW solar PV array began generating power (2015)

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:
40% reduction of carbon footprint between 2005 and 2012 (Scope I and II). Over 60% of campus electricity is from on-site wind turbines, 70% of our total yearly electricity is from renewable sources. We have been recognized as one of the EPA's Top On-Site power producers. Morris was listed at the 27th Top Onsite producer (of 30 producers) in the United States in 2015. In 2014, we earned the Second Nature Climate Leadership Award.

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.