Williams College
OP-5: Building Energy Efficiency
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
5.10 / 6.00 |
Tanja
Srebotnjak Director Zilkha Center for Environmental Initiatives |
Electricity use, performance year (report kilowatt-hours):
| kWh | MMBtu | |
| Imported electricity | 18,649,707 Kilowatt-hours | 63,632.80 MMBtu |
| Electricity from on-site, non-combustion facilities/devices (e.g., renewable energy systems) | 604,874 Kilowatt-hours | 2,063.83 MMBtu |
Stationary fuels and thermal energy, performance year (report MMBtu):
| MMBtu | |
| Stationary fuels used on-site to generate electricity and/or thermal energy | 217,107.75 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 | 264,081 Square feet |
| Healthcare space | 13,516 Square feet |
| Other energy intensive space | 189,176 Square feet |
EUI-adjusted floor area, performance year:
Degree days, performance year:
| Degree days | |
| Heating degree days | 6,731 Degree-Days (°F) |
| Cooling degree days | 442.30 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 | 21,804,082 Kilowatt-hours | 74,395.53 MMBtu |
| Electricity from on-site, non-combustion facilities/devices (e.g., renewable energy systems) | 5,967,737 Kilowatt-hours | 20,361.92 MMBtu |
Stationary fuels and thermal energy, baseline year (report MMBtu):
| MMBtu | |
| Stationary fuels used on-site to generate electricity and/or thermal energy | 261,222 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, 2004 | June 30, 2005 |
A brief description of when and why the energy consumption baseline was adopted:
The building energy consumption baseline was chosen because 2005 was immediately prior to the college's first greenhouse gas emissions reduction goals.
Source-site ratio for imported electricity:
Total energy consumption per unit of floor area:
| Site energy | Source energy | |
| Performance year | 0.09 MMBtu per square foot | 0.14 MMBtu per square foot |
| Baseline year | 0.15 MMBtu per square foot | 0.22 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 Zilkha Center uses its communication channels (social media, newsletter, website, GreenBytes mailing list, etc.) to share information and advice on energy-saving behavior. Examples include information on how to conserve energy during the winter, AC settings in the summer, nudges to keep spaces unoccupied during breaks and more.
The Communications Office in partnership with the Provost, the Zilkha Center and others also shares at least twice annually with the entire campus a sustainability update. This may include energy-related information such as on new solar PV generation (Farmington) and building projects achieving sustainability certification for, inter alia, strong energy efficiency performance.
Building-specific guided tours, brochures and websites inform visitors and others interested about the energy-conserving features of the building, nudging people to support and not counteract those features.
The Zilkha Center's preferred parking program for high-fuel-efficiency vehicles and the availability of free EV charging stations are mentioned in the Transportation section.
New this past year is a Student Interest Group housing pilot, the Sustainable Living Lab, which brought together students in one dorm to learn about and live more sustainably within the context of environmental and social justice.
A brief description of energy use standards and controls employed by the institution:
Williams has a campus-wide building management system (BMS). One of the many things that the BMS is used for is turning buildings to unoccupied mode at appropriate times, with both reduced temperatures and reduced ventilation rates. We are also equipping more buildings with occupancy sensors. Building temperature set-points are adjusted hourly, seasonally and based on the academic calendar (i.e., tightened when fewer people are on campus due to breaks). The table of set-points is available here: https://facilities.williams.edu/policies/energy-conservation-guidelines/
The College also meters and sub-meters energy consumption and generation on campus through the Atrius platform. Staff monitors the dashboards to look for anomalies and they are also accessible to faculty and students for building energy research, learning and other educational projects.
A brief description of Light Emitting Diode (LED) lighting and other energy-efficient lighting strategies employed by the institution:
Williams has now installed indoor LED lighting in almost all exterior and interior areas of the campus now (a small number of final projects are proposed or scheduled for next year).
A brief description of passive solar heating, geothermal systems, and related strategies employed by the institution:
A small but growing number of buildings on campus now use strategies such as passive solar heating and heat pump (including geothermal) technologies. Examples are Fort Bradshaw (art history grad student housing), Center for Development Economics building, and Garfield House. As part of the College's ambitious campus decarbonization goal, heat pumps (geothermal or aquifer thermal storage) will play a major role at campus-wide scale. A recent study by the Integral Group confirmed the potential for geothermal heat exchange as an efficient and low-carbon energy source for thermal conditioning of campus buildings.
https://sustainability.williams.edu/renewable-energy/geothermal/
A brief description of co-generation employed by the institution:
In 2002, Williams replaced one of the three boilers at the heating plant with a boiler capable of supporting cogeneration, and installed a steam turbine/generator at the same time. We are now considering adding a summer steam turbine to generate campus power more efficiently on a 12-months basis.
A brief description of the institution's initiatives to replace energy-consuming appliances, equipment, and systems with high efficiency alternatives:
Appliance replacement programs give preference to energy efficient choices, e.g., EnergyStar certified appliances and to upgrading infrastructure such as server farms to higher efficiency models or cloud-based systems. We can use funding from our annual $1 million sustainability fund for energy efficiency upgrades and retrofits (including LED retrofits). A major energy efficiency measure involved cutting energy use at the Hockey Rink by 50% (https://sustainability.williams.edu/news-events/hockey-rink-energy-use-cut-in-half-in-2009/) and a new icemaker will cut energy consumption even further.
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:
Data in baseline year purchased (imported) electricity includes residential rentals and commercial buildings.
Data in baseline year purchased (imported) electricity includes residential rentals and commercial buildings.
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.