| Overall Rating | Gold - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 71.86 |
| Liaison | Elida Erickson |
| Submission Date | March 23, 2016 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
University of California, Santa Cruz
OP-1: Greenhouse Gas Emissions
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
6.12 / 10.00 |
Christina
Thomure Climate Action Manager Sustainability Office |
"---"
indicates that no data was submitted for this field
None
Does the institution's GHG emissions inventory include all Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions?:
Yes
None
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 | No |
| Waste generated in operations | Yes |
None
Does the institution's GHG emissions inventory include Scope 3 emissions from other categories?:
Yes
None
A brief description of the methodology and/or tool used to complete the GHG emissions inventory:
Calculations were done by the Energy department based on billing data for purchased fuel and electricity. Calculations and conversion factors are from ARB for regulatory compliance and TCR guidelines for remaining calculations and definitions. For scope 3 air travel emissions, we used Connexus data; which is a UC wide travel procurement service that populates our air travel emissions. For scope 3 mobile, the Transportation and Parking Services team extrapolates commuter data from their bi-annual traffic study based on campus population. For scope 3 waste emissions, we calculate based on data from our weight-based billing system that sorts by all waste stream types.
None
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?:
Yes
None
A brief description of the internal and/or external verification process:
Thorough internal audit of all data using utility billing data, cross verified against internal metering data in order to pass third party verification. Third party verification is required for ARB compliance and TCR compliance.
None
Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions::
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Scope 1 GHG emissions from stationary combustion | 19,336 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 21,966 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Scope 1 GHG emissions from other sources | 717 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Scope 2 GHG emissions from purchased electricity | 10,800 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 8,014 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Scope 2 GHG emissions from other sources | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
None
Figures needed to determine total carbon offsets::
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Institution-catalyzed carbon offsets generated | 3,857 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 | 2,679 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
None
A brief description of the institution-catalyzed carbon offsets program:
In 2006, UCSC students passed Measure 26, taxing themselves to buy Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) in order to offset the climate impact of campus electricity purchases. In 2010, UCSC students changed the use of the funds through the passage of Measure 44. This created UCSC’s Carbon Fund to awards grants for student and staff projects on and off-campus that reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Awarded 18 carbon-reducing projects, totaling $182,000 in grants. View the projects awarded here: http://sustainability.ucsc.edu/get-involved/funding/carbon-fund/Projects/2014-2015.html View the carbon fund video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZpWwiVlxk8
None
A brief description of the carbon sequestration program and reporting protocol used:
N/A
None
A brief description of the composting and carbon storage program:
N/A
None
A brief description of the purchased carbon offsets, including third party verifier(s) and contract timeframes:
Contract dated 03/17/15, Product: California Dedicated Offsets ("CCO"), Guaranteed CCOs, replaceable with Offsets, if invalidated, vintage 2014, continued through duration of the period of invalidity set forth in 17 Cal. Code Regs. 9598 applicable to the latest-issued CARB Offset or Replacement CARB Offset provided to buyer under agreement.
None
Figures needed to determine “Weighted Campus Users”::
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Number of residential students | 8,293 | 6,346 |
| Number of residential employees | 301 | 281 |
| Number of in-patient hospital beds | 0 | 0 |
| Full-time equivalent enrollment | 17,544 | 14,661 |
| Full-time equivalent of employees | 3,549 | 4,761 |
| Full-time equivalent of distance education students | 0 | 0 |
None
Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):
| Start Date | End Date | |
| Performance Year | Jan. 1, 2015 | Dec. 31, 2015 |
| Baseline Year | Jan. 1, 2006 | Dec. 31, 2006 |
None
A brief description of when and why the GHG emissions baseline was adopted:
2006 has been adopted for baseline GHG emissions because it is the earliest year we have complete energy/ GHG data. 2006 was adopted as baseline year during the 2012 report.
None
Gross floor area of building space, performance year:
514,838.88
Square meters
None
Floor area of energy intensive building space, performance year:
| Floor Area | |
| Laboratory space | 105,748.70 Square meters |
| Healthcare space | 3,126.37 Square meters |
| Other energy intensive space | 0 Square meters |
None
Scope 3 GHG emissions, performance year::
| Emissions | |
| Business travel | 11,453 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Commuting | 18,961 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 | 1,625 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
| Other categories (please specify below) | 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent |
None
A brief description of the sources included in Scope 3 GHG emissions from "other categories":
N/A
None
A copy of the most recent GHG emissions inventory:
None
The website URL where the GHG emissions inventory is posted:
None
A brief description of the institution’s GHG emissions reduction initiatives, including efforts made during the previous three years:
UCSC has implemented ~18 retrofit and MBCx projects in CY 2014, reducing energy consumption by 1.9M kWh and 64K therms. We have a robust sustainable transportation program, including city & campus bus system and employee van pools, to mitigate commuter emissions.
Most recently, we have begun a year-long, large scale, whole-campus climate & energy study in order to identify a sufficient amount of Carbon Reduction Measures to help us achieve carbon neutrality by 2025. This audit includes energy efficiency and renewable energy, as well as recommendations for new construction policies, emissions-related policy updates & procurement strategies. We have also opted in to California's Cap and Trade program and committed to re-investing the cost avoidance into energy efficiency projects, with a campus goal of reducing emissions from onsite stationary sources of combustion below the compliance level by 2020.
Additionally, UCSC is a founding member of the UC Regents Energy Services Unit, which is working to procure electricity with a high renewable content than what is available through our utility provider, PG&E. This includes UCSC's portion of the 80 MW PV project that UC ESU invested in that is located in Fresno, CA. This PV project will begin operation in late 2016 and provide the campus with 60% of its imported power.
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
Emissions scope includes main campus, lower campus, Long Marine Lab, and 2300 Delaware. Scope 1 emissions include Natural Gas, Propane and Diesel use on main campus.
Discrepancy between Scope 1 emissions in '06 and '14 is due to the co-generation unit shutdown in 2014.
Reported emissions data to California Air Resources Board is available at-
http://www.arb.ca.gov/cc/reporting/ghg-rep/reported-data/ghg-reports.htm
our campus data is embedded in the downloadable spreadsheet.
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.