Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 50.85
Liaison Sarah Williams
Submission Date Feb. 8, 2017
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

Whitman College
OP-1: Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 4.52 / 10.00 Brandon Bishop
Campus Sustainability Coordinator
Physical Plant
"---" 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 Some
Capital goods None
Waste generated in operations All
Fuel- and energy-related activities not included in Scope 1 or Scope 2 All
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:
Clean Air Cool Planet calculator v8.0 was utilized to calculate emissions model.

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:
No additional verification is undertaken.

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 2,127.80 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 2,330 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Gross Scope 1 GHG emissions from other sources 551.50 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 262.80 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Gross Scope 2 GHG emissions from purchased electricity 4,475.30 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 4,680.20 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 7,154.60 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 7,273 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, 2012 June 30, 2013

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 GHG baseline was adopted by the Campus Climate Action Task Force. This task force utilized FY2013 as it was the first year where complete records were maintained. FY2013 running from July 1, 2012 to the end of June 2013 were utilized as the base year. The Performance year ran in accordance with the institutional fiscal FY16 which ran from July 1, 2015-June 30, 2016. We maintain records utilizing a fiscal year to fall in line with institutional budget reporting.

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 12.70 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 12.70 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 907.10 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 1,958.40 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

A brief description of the purchased RECs/GOs including vendor, project source and verification program:
RECs were purchased through Renewable Energy Choice. The certificates are Green-e Certified American Wind 1,136 MWh. Additional Green-e certified RECs where purchased through Pacific Power's Blue Sky program totaling 1,214 MWh.

Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions 6,247.50 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 5,301.90 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Figures needed to determine “Weighted Campus Users”:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Number of students resident on-site 950 1,034
Number of employees resident on-site 7 7
Number of other individuals resident on-site and/or staffed hospital beds 0 0
Total full-time equivalent student enrollment 1,465.10 1,504
Full-time equivalent of employees (staff + faculty) 478 467.40
Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education 154 144
Weighted campus users 1,581.07 1,630.80

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 3.95 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 3.25 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Percentage reduction in adjusted net Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions per weighted campus user from baseline:
0

Part 3

Gross floor area of building space, performance year:
1,127,333 Gross square feet

Floor area of energy intensive building space, performance year:
Floor Area
Laboratory space 115,000 Square feet
Healthcare space 9,424 Square feet
Other energy intensive space 20,000 Square feet

EUI-adjusted floor area, performance year:
1,396,181 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 ---
Commuting 190.50 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Purchased goods and services 12.90 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Capital goods ---
Fuel- and energy-related activities not included in Scope 1 or Scope 2 ---
Waste generated in operations 44.60 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Other categories ---

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:
---

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.