Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 74.80
Liaison Gioia Thompson
Submission Date March 2, 2020

STARS v2.2

University of Vermont
OP-21: Water Use

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 3.91 / 4.00 David Blatchly
Capital Renewal Engineer
Physical Plant Department
"---" 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 Aqueduct Water Risk Atlas:
Low

Total water withdrawal (potable and non-potable combined):
Performance Year Baseline Year
Total water withdrawal 136,554,880 Gallons 182,337,013 Gallons

Potable water use:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Potable water use 117,127,824 Gallons 162,280,216 Gallons

Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):
Start Date End Date
Performance Period July 1, 2018 June 30, 2019
Baseline Period July 1, 2006 June 30, 2007

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

Used same baseline of FY07 and performance year of FY19 when possible for all building-related performance measures. Period of 2007-2019 corresponded with significant changes to the campus, consistently measured data sets.


Figures needed to determine "Weighted Campus Users":
Performance Year Baseline Year
Number of students resident on-site 4,186 4,791
Number of employees resident on-site 36 19
Number of other individuals resident on-site 15 0
Total full-time equivalent student enrollment 12,990 10,805
Full-time equivalent of employees 3,799 3,437
Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education 105 2
Weighted campus users 13,583.50 11,882.50

Potable water use per weighted campus user:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Potable water use per weighted campus user 8,622.80 Gallons 13,657.08 Gallons

Percentage reduction in potable water use per weighted campus user from baseline:
36.86

Gross floor area of building space:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Gross floor area 5,656,908 Gross square feet 5,250,510 Gross square feet

Potable water use per unit of floor area:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Potable water use per unit of floor area 20.71 Gallons per square foot 30.91 Gallons per square foot

Percentage reduction in potable water use per unit of floor area from baseline:
33.01

Area of vegetated grounds:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Vegetated grounds 4,162.28 Acres 4,001 Acres

Total water withdrawal per unit of vegetated grounds:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Total water withdrawal per unit of vegetated grounds 32,807.71 Gallons per acre 45,572.86 Gallons per acre

Percentage reduction in total water withdrawal per unit of vegetated grounds from baseline:
28.01

A brief description of the institution's water-related behavior change initiatives:

Signage in residence halls reminding students not to leave water running. Signs in kitchens reminding staff to report leaks and drips.


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

Recent upgrade of recovery system for steam condensate at the Central Heating & Cooling Plant.


A brief description of the institution's initiatives to replace plumbing fixtures, fittings, appliances, equipment, and systems with water-efficient alternatives:

Dining policy to thaw in fridge instead of under running water.


Website URL where information about the institution’s water conservation and efficiency efforts is available:
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Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:

Baseline year for vegetated grounds is FY14 because it is the closest year that we have data for.
As to how we determined potable vs non, we pulled any utilities flagged as just “water” into the potable category, whereas any identified as “water/sewer” were included in the total use. It is possible and likely that there is more potable water use than what is reflected in the figures, but we have no way of breaking it out with any greater degree of specificity.


Baseline year for vegetated grounds is FY14 because it is the closest year that we have data for.
As to how we determined potable vs non, we pulled any utilities flagged as just “water” into the potable category, whereas any identified as “water/sewer” were included in the total use. It is possible and likely that there is more potable water use than what is reflected in the figures, but we have no way of breaking it out with any greater degree of specificity.

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.