| Overall Rating | Silver |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 61.15 |
| Liaison | Ashley Woolman |
| Submission Date | April 8, 2022 |
Western Colorado University
OP-5: Building Energy Efficiency
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
2.19 / 6.00 |
Ashley
Woolman Sustainability Coordinator Facilities Services |
Electricity use, performance year (report kilowatt-hours):
| kWh | MMBtu | |
| Imported electricity | 8,743,334 Kilowatt-hours | 29,832.26 MMBtu |
| Electricity from on-site, non-combustion facilities/devices (e.g., renewable energy systems) | 8,580 Kilowatt-hours | 29.27 MMBtu |
Stationary fuels and thermal energy, performance year (report MMBtu):
| MMBtu | |
| Stationary fuels used on-site to generate electricity and/or thermal energy | 706,252 MMBtu |
| Imported steam, hot water, and/or chilled water | 0 MMBtu |
Total site energy consumption, performance year:
Gross floor area of building space, performance year:
Floor area of energy intensive space, performance year:
| Floor area | |
| Laboratory space | 39,400 Square feet |
| Healthcare space | 1,250 Square feet |
| Other energy intensive space | 42,500 Square feet |
EUI-adjusted floor area, performance year:
Degree days, performance year:
| Degree days | |
| Heating degree days | 7,976 Degree-Days (°F) |
| Cooling degree days | 156 Degree-Days (°F) |
Total degree days, performance year:
Start and end dates of the performance year (or 3-year period):
| Start date | End date | |
| Performance period | July 1, 2020 | June 30, 2021 |
Total site energy consumption per unit of EUI-adjusted floor area per degree day, performance year:
Electricity use, baseline year (report kWh):
| kWh | MMBtu | |
| Imported electricity | 7,992,792 Kilowatt-hours | 27,271.41 MMBtu |
| Electricity from on-site, non-combustion facilities/devices (e.g., renewable energy systems) | 0 Kilowatt-hours | 0 MMBtu |
Stationary fuels and thermal energy, baseline year (report MMBtu):
| MMBtu | |
| Stationary fuels used on-site to generate electricity and/or thermal energy | 913,249.60 MMBtu |
| Imported steam, hot water, and/or chilled water | 0 MMBtu |
Total site energy consumption, baseline year:
Gross floor area of building space, baseline year:
Start and end dates of the baseline year (or 3-year period):
| Start date | End date | |
| Baseline period | July 1, 2006 | June 30, 2007 |
A brief description of when and why the energy consumption baseline was adopted:
The baseline was established when students lobbied our President to sign the ACUPCC, which created the Sustainable Action Committee to implement our first climate action plan. This also established our GHG inventory and data tracking, so we can measure progress towards carbon neutrality by 2050.
Source-site ratio for imported electricity:
Total energy consumption per unit of floor area:
| Site energy | Source energy | |
| Performance year | 0.66 MMBtu per square foot | 0.72 MMBtu per square foot |
| Baseline year | 1.07 MMBtu per square foot | 1.14 MMBtu per square foot |
Percentage reduction in total source energy consumption per unit of floor area from baseline:
Documentation to support the performance year energy consumption figures reported above:
A brief description of the institution's initiatives to shift individual attitudes and practices in regard to energy efficiency:
The Sustainability Specialist writes a newsletter than often addresses energy consumption and promotes energy efficiency projects on campus. Western also has a Renewable Energy Fund and Sustainability Fund that students can use to implement various energy efficiency type projects (LED light conversions, etc). LEAD Office student sustainability coordinators engage students on various sustainability topics throughout the year, including energy. Our green purchasing policy addresses energy and purchasing energy efficient technology whenever possible. Also, we are implementing a green department certification to help change behaviors surrounding energy, zero waste, etc.
A brief description of energy use standards and controls employed by the institution:
Temperature standards are carefully scheduled and controlled through our campus wide Energy Management System. Specially trained professionals in the Facilities Department constantly monitor and adjust the EMS schedules for "Occupied" and "Unoccupied" time durations based on user feedback and direct observation. Providing lower set point temperatures during unoccupied times is critical to minimizing energy consumption. The EMS system synchronizes the scheduling algorithms with the PID loop controllers for the air handlers in each building to maximize efficiency and keep temperatures as close to set points as possible.
A brief description of Light Emitting Diode (LED) lighting and other energy-efficient lighting strategies employed by the institution:
Our current lamp replacement policy is to replace any burned out bulbs with LED lighting. As mentioned above, students using the Sustainability Fund have installed LED lights in Chipeta dorm. Also, our Housing Director is constantly working to switch to LED lights in the other dorms as the budget allows. New construction is built to LEED Gold standards.
A brief description of passive solar heating, geothermal systems, and related strategies employed by the institution:
All of the domestic hot water for Kelly Hall (30,126sf) is supplied by a passive solar heating system. he 75,000 square foot building harnesses green energy through both passive solar and geothermal energy for heating and cooling. The passive solar design takes advantage of Gunnison’s year-round sunshine, showcasing an abundance of natural light and scenic vistas. Geothermal wells dug 280 feet into the earth provide temperature control, only requiring supplemental heating about six days a year.
A brief description of co-generation employed by the institution:
A brief description of the institution's initiatives to replace energy-consuming appliances, equipment, and systems with high efficiency alternatives:
Western's green purchasing policy addresses the need to replace appliances with energy efficient models as the budget allows. Facilities takes a similar approach of replacing failing equipment or appliances with higher efficiency alternatives. For example, we replaced our aging steam system in Paul Wright Gym with a new high efficiency hydronic system in 2018. In addition, Western performed an overhaul of the entire HVAC system in our science building (Hurst Hall) in 2017. This included new system controls to better regulate temperatures and airflows throughout the building. We have also had outside companies perform building energy audits and equipment audits in order to get recommendations for necessary upgrades. For example, Ameresco performed energy audits in 2009-2010 and Johnstone Supply audited our building HVAC equipment for upgrades in 2018. Many of their recommendations have been implemented or will be as our budget allows.
Website URL where information about the institution’s energy conservation and efficiency program is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
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.