Overall Rating Gold
Overall Score 76.05
Liaison Jack Byrne
Submission Date March 4, 2022

STARS v2.2

Middlebury College
OP-5: Building Energy Efficiency

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 5.28 / 6.00 Jack Byrne
Director of Sustainability Integration
Environmental Affair
"---" 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 17,747,791 Kilowatt-hours 60,555.46 MMBtu
Electricity from on-site, non-combustion facilities/devices (e.g., renewable energy systems) 1,772,245 Kilowatt-hours 6,046.90 MMBtu

Stationary fuels and thermal energy, performance year (report MMBtu):
MMBtu
Stationary fuels used on-site to generate electricity and/or thermal energy 196,448.80 MMBtu
Imported steam, hot water, and/or chilled water 0 MMBtu

Total site energy consumption, performance year:
263,051.16 MMBtu

Performance year building space

Gross floor area of building space, performance year:
2,703,312 Gross square feet

Floor area of energy intensive space, performance year:
Floor area
Laboratory space 220,000 Square feet
Healthcare space 8,500 Square feet
Other energy intensive space 101,279 Square feet

EUI-adjusted floor area, performance year:
3,261,591 Gross square feet

Performance year heating and cooling degree days 

Degree days, performance year:
Degree days
Heating degree days 6,514.20 Degree-Days (°F)
Cooling degree days 1,015.30 Degree-Days (°F)

Total degree days, performance year:
7,529.50 Degree-Days (°F)

Performance period

Start and end dates of the performance year (or 3-year period):
Start date End date
Performance period July 1, 2020 June 30, 2021

Metric used in scoring for Part 1

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

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 21,948,432 Kilowatt-hours 74,888.05 MMBtu
Electricity from on-site, non-combustion facilities/devices (e.g., renewable energy systems) 5,826 Kilowatt-hours 19.88 MMBtu

Stationary fuels and thermal energy, baseline year (report MMBtu):
MMBtu
Stationary fuels used on-site to generate electricity and/or thermal energy 321,614.90 MMBtu
Imported steam, hot water, and/or chilled water 0 MMBtu

Total site energy consumption, baseline year:
396,522.83 MMBtu

Baseline year building space

Gross floor area of building space, baseline year:
2,246,612 Gross square feet

Baseline period

Start and end dates of the baseline year (or 3-year period):
Start date End date
Baseline period July 1, 2007 June 30, 2008

A brief description of when and why the energy consumption baseline was adopted:
We adopted our carbon neutrality by 2016 goal in May, 2007. We use FY 08 as a baseline year.

Source energy

Source-site ratio for imported electricity:
3

Total energy consumption per unit of floor area:
Site energy Source energy
Performance year 0.10 MMBtu per square foot 0.14 MMBtu per square foot
Baseline year 0.18 MMBtu per square foot 0.24 MMBtu per square foot

Metric used in scoring for Part 2

Percentage reduction in total source energy consumption per unit of floor area from baseline:
41.56

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:
The Office of Sustainability Integration has a long running program with our Conservation Psychology faculty and lab to research attitudes and behavior related to environmental and energy conservation. We have developed an Eco-Dorm project that focuses on first year residence halls to engage students in activities and incentives to learn about sustainable living and energy conservation practices. this is part of a larger research effort to identify what kinds of activities make the deepest and longest lasting impact in changing behaviors that are more environmentally and energy conscious.

A brief description of energy use standards and controls employed by the institution:
Over half of the buildings (sq. ft.) on campus are on an energy managment system including timers to regulate temperature based on occupancy hours. We maintain a 68 F setpoint in the winter and 75 F in the summer for buildings with air conditioning. We have a thermal comfort policy that requires avoiding central air conditioning in new buildings and use of siting, design, passive cooling measures first.

A brief description of Light Emitting Diode (LED) lighting and other energy-efficient lighting strategies employed by the institution:
In 2012 we installed about $350,000 worth of LED lighting around campus as the first phase of an ongoing project to convert incandescent and CFL lighting around the campus to LED lighting based on the results and performance of the pilot phase. That work has continued since then and currently about 2/3 of the lighting fixtures on campus are LED.

We had also previously replaced about 80 exterior wallpacks on exterior walls (primarily above doors) with LEDs. There are also several LED surface-mount lights that were put in during recent renovations of residential spaces.

Since 2012

A brief description of passive solar heating, geothermal systems, and related strategies employed by the institution:
Our two solar decathlon houses, Self-Reliance and InSite, which are now student housing both incorporate passive solar design in their construction. We have a geothermal system for the Franklin Envirommental Center which is used to provide cooling to the building in the summer.

A brief description of co-generation employed by the institution:
Middlebury's central heating plant produces steam from biomass gasification and natural gas when needed. We co-generate electricity as a bi-product of steam production to heat and cool the main campus primarily from our our combustion of woodchips. We expect the natural gas component will be phased out starting in 2022-23 with renewable natural gas from an anaerobic digester project on a nearby dairy farm in which the College is a partner.

A brief description of the institution's initiatives to replace energy-consuming appliances, equipment, and systems with high efficiency alternatives:
We have a longstanding partnership with the Vermont Energy Investment Corp's Efficiency Vermont program which provides financial and technical support to accelerate energy conservation and efficiency efforts. Over the pas 15 years the College has completed including 123 efficiency projects with an annual savings of $942,300 and a simple payback of 2.5 years. For instance, new insulation on a section of underground steam pipes cost $17,000 and reduces heat loss equivalent to $5,800 a year.

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.