| Overall Rating | Silver - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 56.76 |
| Liaison | Liz Davey |
| Submission Date | Oct. 13, 2015 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
Tulane University
OP-1: Greenhouse Gas Emissions
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
3.54 / 10.00 |
Liz
Davey Director Office of Sustainability |
Does the institution's GHG emissions inventory include all Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions?:
Does the institution's GHG emissions inventory include all Scope 3 GHG emissions from any of the following categories?:
| Yes or No | |
| Business travel | Yes |
| Commuting | Yes |
| Purchased goods and services | No |
| Capital goods | No |
| 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?:
A brief description of the methodology and/or tool used to complete the GHG emissions inventory:
This inventory covers Tulane’s main campuses in the city of New Orleans, LA as well as satellite campuses and other administrative and research buildings. Each spring semester, data on energy use, waste and purchases of greenhouse gases are gathered from departments across the university by a student intern in the Office of Sustainability. Data are entered in a calculator tool, which uses a set of emissions factors to calculate the resulting greenhouse gasses from each activity. After examining several options, Tulane chose to use the Clean Air – Cool Planet (CA – CP) Campus Carbon Calculator.
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?:
A brief description of the internal and/or external verification process:
Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions::
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Scope 1 GHG emissions from stationary combustion | 20,413 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 21,832.80 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Scope 1 GHG emissions from other sources | 4,558 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 1,598.50 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Scope 2 GHG emissions from purchased electricity | 63,375 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 62,999 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Scope 2 GHG emissions from other sources | 209 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 4,440.60 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 | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 0 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:
None
A brief description of the carbon sequestration program and reporting protocol used:
None
A brief description of the composting and carbon storage program:
None
A brief description of the purchased carbon offsets, including third party verifier(s) and contract timeframes:
None
Figures needed to determine “Weighted Campus Users”::
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Number of residential students | 3,600 | 3,441 |
| Number of residential employees | 13 | 19 |
| Number of in-patient hospital beds | 0 | 0 |
| Full-time equivalent enrollment | 10,957 | 11,843 |
| Full-time equivalent of employees | 5,254 | 4,401 |
| 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, 2013 | Dec. 31, 2013 |
| Baseline Year | Jan. 1, 2010 | Dec. 31, 2010 |
A brief description of when and why the GHG emissions baseline was adopted:
We have chosen 2010 as our baseline year for a number of STARS credits, both because it is the earliest year for which we have complete data for the entire university for a number of the STARS credits. Also, the selection of 2010 data collection allowed sufficient time after Hurricane Katrina for recovery, which included rebuilding the population of the campus.
Gross floor area of building space, performance year:
Floor area of energy intensive building space, performance year:
| Floor Area | |
| Laboratory space | 518,735 Square feet |
| Healthcare space | 0 Square feet |
| Other energy intensive space | 0 Square feet |
Scope 3 GHG emissions, performance year::
| Emissions | |
| Business travel | 20,002 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Commuting | 7,149 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Purchased goods and services | 0 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 | 3,928 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Waste generated in operations | 1,031.06 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Other categories (please specify below) | 1,234 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
A brief description of the sources included in Scope 3 GHG emissions from "other categories":
The emissions in "other categories" are from emissions resulting from study abroad.
A copy of the most recent GHG emissions inventory:
The website URL where the GHG emissions inventory is posted:
A brief description of the institution’s GHG emissions reduction initiatives, including efforts made during the previous three years:
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.