Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 66.65
Liaison Austin Sutherland
Submission Date Aug. 9, 2021

STARS v2.2

University of Pennsylvania
OP-1: Emissions Inventory and Disclosure

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.73 / 3.00
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Part 1. Greenhouse gas emissions inventory

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

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:
The Penn GHG emissions inventory is conducted by a research group within the Penn School of Design: the Center for Environmental Building + Design (CEB+D). The GHG emissions are calculated according to the WRI GHG Protocol with adjustments by the CEB+D to conform the accounting to Penn’s district energy systems. Some emissions categories are estimates and carried forward year-to-year. These estimates and their calculations are being reevaluated and will be appropriately updated.

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?:
No

A brief description of the GHG inventory verification process:
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Documentation to support the GHG inventory verification process:
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Scope 1 GHG emissions
Gross Scope 1 GHG emissions, performance year:
Weight in MTCO2e
Stationary combustion 1,620.70 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Other sources (mobile combustion, process emissions, fugitive emissions) 1,593.30 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Total gross Scope 1 GHG emissions, performance year:
3,214 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Scope 2 GHG emissions
Gross Scope 2 GHG emissions, performance year (market-based):
Weight in MTCO2e
Imported electricity 96,268.40 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Imported thermal energy 90,020 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Total gross Scope 2 GHG emissions, performance year:
186,288.40 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

GHG emissions from biomass combustion
Gross GHG emissions from biogenic sources, performance year:
0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Scope 3 GHG emissions
Does the GHG emissions inventory include Scope 3 emissions from the following sources?:
Yes or No Weight in MTCO2e
Business travel Yes 12,713.20 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Commuting Yes 11,783.10 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Purchased goods and services No 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Capital goods No 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Fuel- and energy-related activities not included in Scope 1 or Scope 2 No 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Waste generated in operations Yes 1,037 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Other sources No 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Total Scope 3 GHG emissions, performance year:
25,533.30 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

A brief description of how the institution accounted for its Scope 3 emissions:
The Penn GHG emissions inventory is conducted by a research group within the Penn School of Design: the Center for Environmental Building + Design (CEB+D). The GHG emissions are calculated according to the WRI GHG Protocol with adjustments by the CEB+D to conform the accounting to Penn’s district energy systems. Some emissions categories are estimates and carried forward year-to-year. These estimates and their calculations are being reevaluated and will be appropriately updated.

Part 2. Air pollutant emissions inventory

Has the institution completed an inventory within the previous three years to quantify its air pollutant emissions?:
Yes

Annual weight of emissions for::
Weight of Emissions
Nitrogen oxides (NOx) 9.33 Tons
Sulfur oxides (SOx) 1.02 Tons
Carbon monoxide (CO) 2.27 Tons
Particulate matter (PM) 1.48 Tons
Ozone (O3) 0 Tons
Lead (Pb) 0 Tons
Hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) 0 Tons
Ozone-depleting compounds (ODCs) 0 Tons
Other standard categories of air emissions identified in permits and/or regulations 0.52 Tons

Do the air pollutant emissions figures provided include the following sources?:
Yes or No
Major stationary sources Yes
Area sources No
Mobile sources No
Commuting No
Off-site electricity production No

None
A brief description of the methodology(ies) the institution used to complete its air emissions inventory:
Reported emissions include emergency generators and fire pumps. Emissions are calculated using the mechanical specifications and fuel usage. Each source is identified within a permit.

Optional Fields

Gross Scope 2 GHG emissions from purchased electricity (location-based):
96,268.40 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Gross Scope 2 GHG emissions from imported thermal energy (location-based) :
90,020 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Website URL where information about the institution’s emissions inventories is available:
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Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
The University of Pennsylvania is a major research institution, with over 3,000 degrees granted annually from twelve professional and academic schools at the Bachelor's, Master's, and Doctorate levels. Penn is committed to reducing emissions and energy use, as stated in the 2019 "Climate and Sustainability Action Plan 3.0." This submission documents Penn's efforts during the FY20 year and compares them to the FY09 baseline year which corresponds with the University's "Climate and Sustainability Action Plan. 3.0." The submission relies on information related to the main, academic, West Philadelphia campus, but to more fully document efforts across the Penn system, information related to the Morris Arboretum and New Bolton Center has also been referenced and noted as outside the boundary in descriptions. The information is used to enrich examples of University efforts and is not intended to be the primary justification for credits. The responses for each of the questions and sub-questions are drawn from University materials, both internal and public documents. Each section notes the website where the information can be found.

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.