Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 51.85
Liaison Karen Eckert, Ph.D.
Submission Date Nov. 30, 2015
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.0

Principia College
OP-1: Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 5.15 / 10.00 Adam Eckert
Sustainability Student
Center for Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Does the institution's GHG emissions inventory include all Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions?:
Yes

Does the institution's GHG emissions inventory include all Scope 3 GHG emissions from any of the following categories?:
Yes or No
Business travel No
Commuting Yes
Purchased goods and services Yes
Capital goods Yes
Fuel- and energy-related activities not included in Scope 1 or Scope 2 Yes
Waste generated in operations Yes

Does the institution's GHG emissions inventory include Scope 3 emissions from other categories?:
Yes

A brief description of the methodology and/or tool used to complete the GHG emissions inventory:

We conducted our GHG emissions inventory using Clean Air-Cool Planet’s Campus Carbon Calculator; specifically, v 1.0 of the UNH Sustainability Institute's online calculator and v 6.5 of the accompanying Handbook.


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?:
Yes

A brief description of the internal and/or external verification process:
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Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions::
Performance Year Baseline Year
Scope 1 GHG emissions from stationary combustion 2,718,385.30 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 2,816,849.90 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Scope 1 GHG emissions from other sources 214,741.30 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 233,977.60 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Scope 2 GHG emissions from purchased electricity 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 10,981,292.90 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Scope 2 GHG emissions from other sources 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Figures needed to determine total carbon offsets::
Performance Year Baseline Year
Institution-catalyzed carbon offsets generated 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Carbon sequestration due to land that the institution manages specifically for sequestration 809 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 809 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Carbon storage from on-site composting 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Third-party verified carbon offsets purchased 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

A brief description of the institution-catalyzed carbon offsets program:

Principia has not yet implemented a program to offset GHG emissions by implementing projects that reduce GHG in the local community (e.g., students volunteering to weatherize nearby homes whereby, in agreement with the homeowner, the college would “own” the emissions reductions that result).


A brief description of the carbon sequestration program and reporting protocol used:

Principia actively manages a 2000-acre, FSC-certified forest as part of its campus holdings. The average age of our forest is ca. 100 yr; using a conservative carbon sequestration rate of ca. 1 metric tonne of carbon per ha of forest at this mature age, the forest sequesters ca. 809 metric tonnes of carbon/yr. There is no formal reporting protocol.
Note: "Institutions may use any commonly accepted forest sector protocol to report carbon sequestration, for example Climate Action Reserve’s Forest Project Protocol, the Canadian Council of Forest Ministers’ Framework for Forest Management Offset Protocols, or the Compliance Offset Protocols (COP) adopted by the California Air Resources Board (CARB). On and off-campus projects may be counted."


A brief description of the composting and carbon storage program:

Principia does not have on-site composting, but was recognized by the IFSC during the performance year (2014) as one of 8 institutions in Illinois that could demonstrate 100% pre- and post-consumer composting of food waste in our Dining Services (http://illinoiscomposts.org/we-compost/institutions). In addition, all disposable plates, glasses, lids, straws, silverware and to-go containers are compostable. The material is collected weekly by St Louis Composting (http://stlcompost.com/).


A brief description of the purchased carbon offsets, including third party verifier(s) and contract timeframes:

The college receives ca. 9200 RECs with its 100% renewable power purchases each year, but not does sell or otherwise financially benefit from these RECs.


Figures needed to determine “Weighted Campus Users”::
Performance Year Baseline Year
Number of residential students 503 503
Number of residential employees 105 105
Number of in-patient hospital beds 13 13
Full-time equivalent enrollment 503 503
Full-time equivalent of employees 323 341
Full-time equivalent of distance education students 0 0

Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):
Start Date End Date
Performance Year Jan. 1, 2014 Dec. 31, 2014
Baseline Year Jan. 1, 2008 Dec. 31, 2008

A brief description of when and why the GHG emissions baseline was adopted:

We've used a 3-yr period (2011, 2014) for other STARS categories, but in this case we completed a 3-scope GHG inventory using the Clean Air-Cool Planet’s Campus Carbon Calculator to span 10 years (2005-2014) in order to capture major efficiency upgrades and our transition from 100% traditional electrical power to sourcing 100% renewable power in 2009.


Gross floor area of building space, performance year:
1,077,376 Square feet

Floor area of energy intensive building space, performance year:
Floor Area
Laboratory space 49,003 Square feet
Healthcare space 11,092 Square feet
Other energy intensive space 0 Square feet

Scope 3 GHG emissions, performance year::
Emissions
Business travel 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Commuting 435,434.60 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Purchased goods and services 85.90 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Capital goods 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Fuel- and energy-related activities not included in Scope 1 or Scope 2 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Waste generated in operations 33.80 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Other categories (please specify below) 394,555.90 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

A brief description of the sources included in Scope 3 GHG emissions from "other categories":

"Other" = Student travel to/from home
Note to self:
"Commuting" = Faculty, Staff and Student (the latter 100% carbon-free)
"Purchased goods and services" = Paper, Wastewater (septic and central), Landscaping
"Waste generated" = Landfill (w/wo CH4 recovery)


A copy of the most recent GHG emissions inventory:
The website URL where the GHG emissions inventory is posted:
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A brief description of the institution’s GHG emissions reduction initiatives, including efforts made during the previous three years:

1. Principia continues its commitment to sourcing 100% power (electric)
2. Old (30-45 yr) boilers and air-cooled chillers have been replaced with a constant volume piping/ pumping system that relies on two water-cooled chillers and two condensing boilers. All pumps are variable flow controlled by VFD. The new system is designed to operate using 140°F or below heating water temperature (vs. the old 180°F) to take full advantage of the condensing boilers.
3. Flex Crew vehicles (Department of Facilities) are being replaced with electric vehicles (7 to date), which has resulted in the availability of Level 1 charging stations on campus.


Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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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.