Overall Rating Silver
Overall Score 59.88
Liaison Alex Frank
Submission Date April 14, 2022

STARS v2.2

University of Wisconsin-Madison
OP-21: Water Use

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 4.42 / 5.00 Alex Frank
Sustainability Analyst
Office of Sustainability
"---" 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:
Medium to High

Total water withdrawal (potable and non-potable combined):
Performance Year Baseline Year
Total water withdrawal 785,066,296 Gallons 1,021,240,542 Gallons

Potable water use:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Potable water use 556,599,096 Gallons 734,897,142 Gallons

Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):
Start Date End Date
Performance Period July 1, 2019 June 30, 2020
Baseline Period July 1, 2006 June 30, 2007

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

FY07 was adopted as the preferred baseline year for STARS data reporting as it represented consistent data availability across the majority of credits.

FY20 was chosen as the performance year since campus operations were limited during the majority of FY21. Weighted campus user and floor area figures reported in this credit are for FY20.


Figures needed to determine "Weighted Campus Users":
Performance Year Baseline Year
Number of students resident on-site 7,956 7,259
Number of employees resident on-site 178 178
Number of other individuals resident on-site 0 0
Total full-time equivalent student enrollment 41,159 37,237
Full-time equivalent of employees 19,765 16,255.20
Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education 206 0
Weighted campus users 47,572 41,978.40

Potable water use per weighted campus user:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Potable water use per weighted campus user 11,700.14 Gallons 17,506.55 Gallons

Percentage reduction in potable water use per weighted campus user from baseline:
33.17

Gross floor area of building space:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Gross floor area 24,702,745 Gross square feet 20,469,197 Gross square feet

Potable water use per unit of floor area:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Potable water use per unit of floor area 22.53 Gallons per square foot 35.90 Gallons per square foot

Percentage reduction in potable water use per unit of floor area from baseline:
37.24

Area of vegetated grounds:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Vegetated grounds 1,750 Acres 1,831 Acres

Total water withdrawal per unit of vegetated grounds:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Total water withdrawal per unit of vegetated grounds 448,609.31 Gallons per acre 557,750.16 Gallons per acre

Percentage reduction in total water withdrawal per unit of vegetated grounds from baseline:
19.57

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

Data represents potable water usage as measured through utility billing data as well as non-potable (lake) water used in the Walnut St. and Charter St. heating plants.

A few small water usage sources were not included because metered data was not available (this includes small building rainwater cisterns and the well water used at the Arboretum visitor center). Additionally, water usage data for a few buildings outside the institutional boundary are included in these data as individual building meters do not exist (Dairy Forage, WI Historical Society, Forest Products Lab, and Cereal Crops) and therefore the total campus usage includes the usage for these buildings.

Vegetated acres were based upon estimates of permeable surfaces on campus developed as part of stormwater management activities. Estimates were completed in 2007 and 2015 but only minor changes in permeable surfaces are estimated between 2015 and the performance year.

FY20 was chosen as the performance year since campus operations were limited during the majority of FY21. Weighted campus user and floor area figures reported in this credit are for FY20.


Data represents potable water usage as measured through utility billing data as well as non-potable (lake) water used in the Walnut St. and Charter St. heating plants.

A few small water usage sources were not included because metered data was not available (this includes small building rainwater cisterns and the well water used at the Arboretum visitor center). Additionally, water usage data for a few buildings outside the institutional boundary are included in these data as individual building meters do not exist (Dairy Forage, WI Historical Society, Forest Products Lab, and Cereal Crops) and therefore the total campus usage includes the usage for these buildings.

Vegetated acres were based upon estimates of permeable surfaces on campus developed as part of stormwater management activities. Estimates were completed in 2007 and 2015 but only minor changes in permeable surfaces are estimated between 2015 and the performance year.

FY20 was chosen as the performance year since campus operations were limited during the majority of FY21. Weighted campus user and floor area figures reported in this credit are for FY20.

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.