Overall Rating Platinum
Overall Score 91.10
Liaison Alex Davis
Submission Date Feb. 28, 2023

STARS v2.2

Arizona State University
OP-21: Water Use

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 4.92 / 6.00 Alex Davis
Asst. Director
University Sustainability Practices
"---" 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:
Extremely High

Part 1. Reduction in potable water use per person 

Total water withdrawal (potable and non-potable combined):
Performance Year Baseline Year
Total water withdrawal 1,096,336,188 Gallons 828,025,504 Gallons

Potable water use:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Potable water use 1,034,905,780 Gallons 799,521,036 Gallons

Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):
Start Date End Date
Performance Period July 1, 2020 June 30, 2021
Baseline Period July 1, 2006 June 30, 2007

If end date of the baseline year/period is 2004 or earlier, provide:

A brief description of when and why the water use baseline was adopted:
The baseline coincides with when Arizona State University completed its first formal Greenhouse Gas Inventory.

Figures needed to determine "Weighted Campus Users":
Performance Year Baseline Year
Number of students resident on-site 12,969 6,100
Number of employees resident on-site 0 0
Number of other individuals resident on-site 0 0
Total full-time equivalent student enrollment 116,606 52,795
Full-time equivalent of employees 12,136 9,281
Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education 36,874 0
Weighted campus users 72,143.25 48,082

Potable water use per weighted campus user:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Potable water use per weighted campus user 14,345.15 Gallons 16,628.28 Gallons

Percentage reduction in potable water use per weighted campus user from baseline:
13.73

Part 2. Reduction in potable water use per unit of floor area

Gross floor area of building space:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Gross floor area 26,740,566 Gross square feet 14,033,632 Gross square feet

Potable water use per unit of floor area:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Potable water use per unit of floor area 38.70 Gallons per square foot 56.97 Gallons per square foot

Percentage reduction in potable water use per unit of floor area from baseline:
32.07

Part 3. Reduction in total water withdrawal per unit of vegetated grounds 

Area of vegetated grounds:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Vegetated grounds 565 Acres 243 Acres

Total water withdrawal per unit of vegetated grounds:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Total water withdrawal per unit of vegetated grounds 1,940,418.03 Gallons per acre 3,407,512.36 Gallons per acre

Percentage reduction in total water withdrawal per unit of vegetated grounds from baseline:
43.05

Optional Fields 

A brief description of the institution's water-related behavior change initiatives:
---

A brief description of the institution's water recovery and reuse initiatives:
Water reuse is a core part of Arizona's water system, and ASU participates in shared regional water reuse systems instead of duplicating systems.

All wastewater produced at ASU's Tempe, Downtown Phoenix and West campuses is directed to the 91st Avenue Wastewater Treatment Plant. This facility is jointly owned by the Sub-Regional Operating Group Cities of Glendale, Mesa, Phoenix, Scottsdale and Tempe and is operated by the City of Phoenix. Treated water from this plant is reused for three purposes: to cool Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station, for agriculture in the Buckeye Irrigation District, and recharged through the Tres Rios wetlands and the Agua Fria Linear Recharge Project.

Wastewater from the Polytechnic campus flows to the Greenfield Water Reclamation Plant, which is jointly owned by the Cities of Mesa and Gilbert, along with the town of Queen Creek. Treated water from this plant is sent to the Gila River Indian Community in exchange for Central Arizona Project supplies.

Lake Havasu campus wastewater is treated at Mulberry Wastewater Treatment Plant or the Island Wastewater Treatment Plant, depending on local conditions. Treated wastewater is recycled for non-potable uses in Lake Havasu City, such as landscape irrigation.

A brief description of the institution's initiatives to replace plumbing fixtures, fittings, appliances, equipment, and systems with water-efficient alternatives:
Arizona State University has reduced water consumption in many buildings around campus through the installation of low-flow water fixtures such as sinks, showers, toilets, and in some buildings, waterless urinals. ASU invested $1.9M in 2020 to retrofit 60 buildings on the Tempe campus with low-flow fixtures to save an estimated 26 million gallons per year.

Ongoing projects to replace turf grass with desert-adapted landscaping also support water conservation efforts.

Website URL where information about the institution’s water conservation and efficiency efforts is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
Data for ASU's Polytechnic campus shows a notable decline in water use over the past decade. Exact information on why this decline occurred is not available. However, two factors may have contributed to the decline: a transition to predominantly low-water use landscaping and the closure of a large portion of the Desert Villages housing (single-family homes that originally served as base housing).

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.