Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 45.39
Liaison Holli Fajack
Submission Date July 6, 2017
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

California State University, Long Beach
OP-1: Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 4.93 / 10.00 Holli Fajack
Sustainability Manager
Office of Sustainability, Beach Building Services
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Part 1 

Has the institution conducted a GHG emissions inventory that includes all Scope 1 and 2 emissions? :
Yes

Does the institution’s GHG emissions inventory include all, some or none of its Scope 3 GHG emissions from the following categories?:
All, Some, or None
Business travel Some
Commuting All
Purchased goods and services None
Capital goods None
Waste generated in operations All
Fuel- and energy-related activities not included in Scope 1 or Scope 2 None
Other categories None

A copy of the most recent GHG emissions inventory:
A brief description of the methodology and/or tool used to complete the GHG emissions inventory, including how the institution accounted for each category of Scope 3 emissions reported above:
The inventory process began in the fall of 2016 with two student assistants assisting the Sustainability Coordinator with the effort. The student assistants were provided with training and delegated responsibility for gathering, compiling, and synthesizing raw data related to scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions sources. Concurrently, the university's Parking and Transportation office administered its annual state-mandated employee transportation survey and the Sustainability Office developed and distributed a student transportation survey during the fall 2016 semester. The data gathered from both of these surveys was then provided to a transportation consulting firm, which was responsible for calculating the greenhouse gas emissions related to faculty, staff, and student commuting. In the spring of 2017, all data was compiled, formatted, and verified for accuracy for final entry into the Carbon MAP 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?:
No

A brief description of the internal and/or external verification process:
N/A

Documentation to support the internal and/or external verification process:
---

Does the institution wish to pursue Part 2 and Part 3 of this credit? (reductions in Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions):
Yes

Part 2 

Gross Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Gross Scope 1 GHG emissions from stationary combustion 6,598 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 6,007 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Gross Scope 1 GHG emissions from other sources 3,565 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 2,692 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Gross Scope 2 GHG emissions from purchased electricity 14,430 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 16,805 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Gross Scope 2 GHG emissions from other sources 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Total 24,593 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 25,504 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):
Start Date End Date
Performance Year July 1, 2015 June 30, 2016
Baseline Year July 1, 2009 June 30, 2010

A brief description of when and why the GHG emissions baseline was adopted (e.g. in sustainability plans and policies or in the context of other reporting obligations):
The baseline year was selected because it was the year for which the first greenhouse gas emissions inventory was completed. The year 2009-10 was selected because it was the most recent year for which data was available when the university signed the Second Nature Carbon Commitment in 2011 (formerly known as the American Colleges and University Presidents' Climate Commitment).

Figures needed to determine total carbon offsets:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Third-party verified carbon offsets purchased (exclude purchased RECs/GOs) 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
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
Carbon offsets included above for which the emissions reductions have been sold or transferred by the institution 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Net carbon offsets 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

If total performance year carbon offsets are greater than zero, provide:

A brief description of the offsets in each category reported above, including vendor, project source, verification program and contract timeframes (as applicable):
N/A

The reporting fields in the table below are reserved for institutions that have NOT already accounted for renewable energy purchases (including RECs and GOs) in their Scope 2 GHG emissions calculations. Other institutions - including all SIMAP users - should report zero ('0') to avoid double-counting. 

Emissions reductions attributable to Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) or Guarantee of Origin (GO) purchases:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Emissions reductions attributable to REC/GO purchases 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

A brief description of the purchased RECs/GOs including vendor, project source and verification program:
N/A

Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions 24,593 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 25,504 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Figures needed to determine “Weighted Campus Users”:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Number of students resident on-site 2,638 1,940
Number of employees resident on-site 2 2
Number of other individuals resident on-site and/or staffed hospital beds 2 2
Total full-time equivalent student enrollment 31,175 28,882
Full-time equivalent of employees (staff + faculty) 3,671 3,070
Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education 0 0
Weighted campus users 26,796.50 24,451.50

Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions per weighted campus user:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions per weighted campus user 0.92 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 1.04 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Percentage reduction in adjusted net Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions per weighted campus user from baseline:
12.01

Part 3

Gross floor area of building space, performance year:
5,717,697 Gross square feet

Floor area of energy intensive building space, performance year:
Floor Area
Laboratory space 194,814 Square feet
Healthcare space 38,629 Square feet
Other energy intensive space 0 Square feet

EUI-adjusted floor area, performance year:
6,184,583 Gross square feet

Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions per unit of EUI-adjusted floor area, performance year:
0.00 MtCO2e per square foot

Optional Fields 

Scope 3 GHG emissions, performance year:
Emissions
Business travel 1,756 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Commuting 37,128 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 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Waste generated in operations 102 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Other categories 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

A brief description of the institution’s GHG emissions reduction initiatives, including efforts made during the previous three years:
---

The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
---

Additional documentation to support the submission:
---

Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
Please note, the commuter related emissions were not calculated using the Carbon Map Calculator tool. The university worked with a transportation consulting firm to analyze commuter survey data and calculate the VMT and greenhouse gas emissions related to commuting. Because we are only allowed to upload one inventory document, we have added an additional worksheet to the Carbon Calculator spreadsheet which is labeled "VMT-GHG Calcs 2017." Also, please note that the Carbon Map calculator computes our emissions from solid waste to be negative 102 MT eCO2. We assume this is because the facility that our waste goes to captures the methane for energy production. However, since the reporting field above does not allow us to enter a negative number or the number zero, we have input the number 102.

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.