Overall Rating Gold
Overall Score 73.66
Liaison Amber Saxton
Submission Date Feb. 22, 2024

STARS v2.2

George Mason University
OP-5: Building Energy Efficiency

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 3.78 / 6.00 DJ Spaulding
Energy and Utility Manager
Facilities Management
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Part 1. Site energy use per unit of floor area

Performance year energy consumption

Electricity use, performance year (report kilowatt-hours):
kWh MMBtu
Imported electricity 116,473,486 Kilowatt-hours 397,407.53 MMBtu
Electricity from on-site, non-combustion facilities/devices (e.g., renewable energy systems) 0 Kilowatt-hours 0 MMBtu

Stationary fuels and thermal energy, performance year (report MMBtu):
MMBtu
Stationary fuels used on-site to generate electricity and/or thermal energy 462,895 MMBtu
Imported steam, hot water, and/or chilled water 0 MMBtu

Total site energy consumption, performance year:
860,302.53 MMBtu

Performance year building space

Gross floor area of building space, performance year:
837,647.26 Gross square meters

Floor area of energy intensive space, performance year:
Floor area
Laboratory space 22,341.22 Square meters
Healthcare space 0 Square meters
Other energy intensive space 15,657.31 Square meters

EUI-adjusted floor area, performance year:
897,987.02 Gross square meters

Performance year heating and cooling degree days 

Degree days, performance year:
Degree days
Heating degree days 2,248.89 Degree-Days (°C)
Cooling degree days 742.78 Degree-Days (°C)

Total degree days, performance year:
2,991.67 Degree-Days (°C)

Performance period

Start and end dates of the performance year (or 3-year period):
Start date End date
Performance period July 1, 2021 June 30, 2022

Metric used in scoring for Part 1

Total site energy consumption per unit of EUI-adjusted floor area per degree day, performance year:
98.84 Btu / GSM / Degree-Day (°C)

Part 2. Reduction in source energy use per unit of floor area

Baseline year energy consumption

STARS 2.2 requires electricity data in kilowatt-hours (kWh). If a baseline has already been established in a previous version of STARS and the institution wishes to continue using it, the electricity data must be re-entered in kWh. To convert existing electricity figures from MMBtu to kWh, simply multiply by 293.07107 MMBtu/kWh.

Electricity use, baseline year (report kWh):
kWh MMBtu
Imported electricity 76,241,266.58 Kilowatt-hours 260,135.20 MMBtu
Electricity from on-site, non-combustion facilities/devices (e.g., renewable energy systems) 0 Kilowatt-hours 0 MMBtu

Stationary fuels and thermal energy, baseline year (report MMBtu):
MMBtu
Stationary fuels used on-site to generate electricity and/or thermal energy 290,594 MMBtu
Imported steam, hot water, and/or chilled water 0 MMBtu

Total site energy consumption, baseline year:
550,729.20 MMBtu

Baseline year building space

Gross floor area of building space, baseline year:
425,359.54 Gross square meters

Baseline period

Start and end dates of the baseline year (or 3-year period):
Start date End date
Baseline period July 1, 2005 June 30, 2006

A brief description of when and why the energy consumption baseline was adopted:
For the 2024 submission GMU is using FY22 as a performance year for quantitative data; the baseline year was selected as FY05 as their baseline for data accuracy and was the baseline year used in the last STARS submission. Going back, it is the year we have the best data for, and data accuracy is paramount for assessment.

Source energy

Source-site ratio for imported electricity:
3

Total energy consumption per unit of floor area:
Site energy Source energy
Performance year 1.03 MMBtu per square meter 1.98 MMBtu per square meter
Baseline year 1.29 MMBtu per square meter 2.52 MMBtu per square meter

Metric used in scoring for Part 2

Percentage reduction in total source energy consumption per unit of floor area from baseline:
21.52

Optional Fields 

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:
Facilities Energy Mgmt. holds an annual event to encourage all students, staff, and faculty on the Fairfax campus to power down their non-critical devices. The Lights out - Power down! event aims to reduce the university's power load. Mason's Housing and Residence Life provides reminders to residents to turn off, set thermostats, and take shorter showers. Facilities Energy Mgmt. works with students to help with their own individual "Lights Out" program which aims to strategically turn off target non-essential lights on campus.

A brief description of energy use standards and controls employed by the institution:
Mason has set recommended temperatures for hot and cold weather and installed wall mounted and ceiling mounted occupancy and vacancy sensors throughout its campus. Mason is standardize laboratory ventilation design levels for different classifications of labs.

A brief description of Light Emitting Diode (LED) lighting and other energy-efficient lighting strategies employed by the institution:
At George Mason University LED technology has been installed in the majority of the outdoor lighting systems on the Fairfax and Prince William Campuses. The lighting systems include road ways, parking lots, walkways and parking garage lighting systems. Interior LED upgrades are being assessed for areas of high use and visibility to our students, facility, and staff. These areas include hallways, gymnasiums, and common areas.

A brief description of passive solar heating, geothermal systems, and related strategies employed by the institution:
In Exploratory Hall on Mason's Fairfax campus, daylight harvesting systems were used in the labs and the building uses a screen to evenly distribute light into the interior space to reduce heating and cooling needs and loads. Passive solar heating was also incorporated into the design of the new Health and Human Services building.

A brief description of co-generation employed by the institution:
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A brief description of the institution's initiatives to replace energy-consuming appliances, equipment, and systems with high efficiency alternatives:
Since FY2005, Mason has initiated two Energy Performance Savings Contracts with Siemens Industry, Inc. totaling $16.7 million dollars. The 40 energy improvement measures yield $2.5 million dollars in savings annually. Mason recently started a 5-year service contract with Siemens Industry, Inc. to perform retro-commissioning on the highest energy-use intensity buildings.

Website URL where information about the institution’s energy conservation and efficiency program is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
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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.