Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 58.21
Liaison Julie Hopper
Submission Date July 29, 2021

STARS v2.2

University of Southern California
OP-5: Building Energy Efficiency

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 2.84 / 6.00 Elias Platte-Bermeo
Sustainability Program Assistant
Office of Sustainability
"---" 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 215,862,710 Kilowatt-hours 736,523.57 MMBtu
Electricity from on-site, non-combustion facilities/devices (e.g., renewable energy systems) 45,993 Kilowatt-hours 156.93 MMBtu

Stationary fuels and thermal energy, performance year (report MMBtu):
MMBtu
Stationary fuels used on-site to generate electricity and/or thermal energy 519,296.87 MMBtu
Imported steam, hot water, and/or chilled water 0 MMBtu

Total site energy consumption, performance year:
1,255,977.36 MMBtu

Performance year building space

Gross floor area of building space, performance year:
16,761,697 Gross square feet

Floor area of energy intensive space, performance year:
Floor area
Laboratory space 791,081 Square feet
Healthcare space 44,563 Square feet
Other energy intensive space 2,505 Square feet

EUI-adjusted floor area, performance year:
18,435,490 Gross square feet

Performance year heating and cooling degree days 

Degree days, performance year:
Degree days
Heating degree days 1,338 Degree-Days (°F)
Cooling degree days 1,387 Degree-Days (°F)

Total degree days, performance year:
2,725 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, 2018 July 30, 2019

Metric used in scoring for Part 1

Total site energy consumption per unit of EUI-adjusted floor area per degree day, performance year:
25.00 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 204,619,638 Kilowatt-hours 698,162.20 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 432,628.60 MMBtu
Imported steam, hot water, and/or chilled water 0 MMBtu

Total site energy consumption, baseline year:
1,130,790.80 MMBtu

Baseline year building space

Gross floor area of building space, baseline year:
13,470,093 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, 2013 June 30, 2014

A brief description of when and why the energy consumption baseline was adopted:
Energy baseline was adopted in order to align with the baseline used in the university's Sustainability 2020 Plan goals regarding greenhouse gas reduction.

Source energy

Source-site ratio for imported electricity:
3

Total energy consumption per unit of floor area:
Site energy Source energy
Performance year 0.07 MMBtu per square foot 0.16 MMBtu per square foot
Baseline year 0.08 MMBtu per square foot 0.19 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:
13.22

Optional Fields 

Documentation to support the performance year energy consumption figures reported above:
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A brief description of the institution's initiatives to shift individual attitudes and practices in regard to energy efficiency:
In collaboration, USC Housing and Facilities Planning & Management (FPM) have sponsored dorm energy efficiency competitions. This has been a great way to educate students and boast participation in energy saving efforts. For several years USC has participated in LADWP's Demand Response program. In order to ensure successful participation, the Energy Services team proactively reaches out to building users to explain the process, participation, and its importance. Subject Matter Experts have presented at bi-annual sustainability forums to discuss ongoing projects and how students, staff and faculty play a role in energy efficiency efforts. Finally the team has created a public dashboard so that the community can actively understand the university's electricity usage in real time (https://buildingos.com/s/usc/portfolio/?chapterId=40473).

A brief description of energy use standards and controls employed by the institution:
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A brief description of Light Emitting Diode (LED) lighting and other energy-efficient lighting strategies employed by the institution:
Since the baseline year, 23 additional buildings and generated an estimated 5 million kWh in energy savings each year.

A brief description of passive solar heating, geothermal systems, and related strategies employed by the institution:
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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:
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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.