data & sustainability: how the right data creates success

Western Oregon University

Wheaton College (MA)

Whitworth University

Widener University

Wilkes University

Williams College

Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Worcester State College

Wright State University

Xavier University

Yeshiva University

Youngstown State University

Data and Sustainability: How the Right Data Creates Success

2

Introduction and Agenda

Webinar Host:

Heather FinneganThe Challenges of a Sustainability Professional

Case Studies

Using GHG Inventory Data to make the case for change

Communicating STARS results to stakeholders

Creating an actionable Sustainability Plan

Questions/Discussion

Agenda:

Feel Free to Start a Dialogue with Our Presenters

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attendee following

today’s session

3

The Life of a Sustainability Professional

4

What are your Pressure Points?

5

Not enough time!

Lack of “buy-in”

Competing Priorities

Benchmarking Case Study

Sustainability Benchmarking

GHG Inventory and Analysis

Benchmarking for 60+ Additional

Metrics

Sustainability Reporting

Completed STARS Report Card

Strategic Recommendations

to Improve Performance

Sustainability Planning

Campus-Wide Stakeholder Engagement

Published Sustainability or

Climate Action Plan

6

Senior Level Presentations

7

The Challenge of Validated Data

Providing a consistent and quality data set for benchmarking

“Looking at current [ACUPCC] reports, there are countless errors and

problems”

- Carnegie Mellon University Researchers

• Likely the reporters are not aware of these issues

• Systems are not designed to notice errors

• Questions feasibility of benchmarking reported data

Second Nature Reporting Site Disclaimer:

What the Researchers Say:

Through the Sightlines “QVQ” process, institutions have the ability to

compare with confidence and report without reservations

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-100%

-90%

-80%

-70%

-60%

-50%

-40%

-30%

-20%

-10%

0%

0

5,000

10,000

15,000

20,000

25,000

30,000

35,000

40,000

45,000

50,000

Pe

rce

nt

Ch

an

ge f

rom

Bas

eli

ne

MT

CD

E

Gross EmissionsIndexed to FY2006

Scope 1 Scope 2 Scope 3 Net Emissions Offsets Change from baseline

Half of gross emissions were offset in FY15

Offsets Have Major Role in Reducing Net Emissions

Net EmissionsIndexed to FY2006

Only Half of Env/Mech Target Funded

Spending should be directed toward envelope/mechanical targets

10

0%

50%

100%

150%

200%

250%

300%

Pe

rce

nta

ge

of

Ta

rge

t F

un

de

d

Breakout of Target Funding

Env/Mech Target:

$9.1 millionSp/Prog Target:

$4.1 million

Envelope/Mechanical Space/Program

Beautiful Space, but Mechanical Rooms in Need

11

3.36

4.19

0 1 2 3 4 5

Example

Peers

Mechanical Room Inspection Score

Over Half of Expenses go to HVAC Outsourcing

12

HVAC51%

Building Maintenance

24%

Custodial16%

Admin1%

Utilities0.2%

Grounds8%

2015 Expense Mix

HVAC expenses have increased by $1/GSF –

this is an additional $2 million in costs.

HVAC21%

Building Maintenance

32%

Custodial23%

Admin4%

Utilities7%

Grounds13%

2006 Expense Mix

HVAC expenses have increased, but with no drop in people costs

Increase in Spending Outpaces Peers

13

$0

$1

$2

$3

$4

$5

$6

$7

$8

$9

$10

2006 2015

$/G

SF

Example Operating Actuals

Daily Service PM Utilities Inflation

Utilities

$0

$1

$2

$3

$4

$5

$6

$7

$8

$9

$10

2006 2015

Peer Operating Actuals

Utilities

While peers stabilize, Example has increased all areas of its operating budget

Reporting Case Study




Metrics








Climate Action Plan

14


15

Challenges of STARS Reporting System

What the Campus Users are Say:

2015 AASHE Membership Survey

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

Buildings Energy Air & Climate Waste Water Dining Purchasing Grounds Transportation

Po

ints

STARS Operations Performance

Estimated Points Earned Points Remaining Campuses with Similar Enrollment

Performance By Category

16

Successes

-1%

-26% -25%

-30%

-25%

-20%

-15%

-10%

-5%

0%

Space Energy Use(MMBTU)

MMBTU / GSF

% C

ha

ng

e

Energy ProfileFY15 indexed to FY11 baseline

Other successes:

• Estimated 0.2% of energy consumption

generated from on-campus solar

17

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Energy Consumption

BT

U / G

SF

/ D

eg

ree

da

y

Example

University

Performance Against

STARS Threshold

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Example (2.1)

Po

ints


Opportunities

18

Campus-Wide

Energy and Water

Benchmarking

Program

Bridging the Gap – Scenario #2

19

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Example (2.1)

Po

ints


Best-in-class

offsite

renewables: 50%

of total energy

Offset remaining

scope 2 with

RECs: approx.

$3,478

Platinum & Gold Institutions

What is the secret to success?

20

Category Best in Class

Performance

Overall Waste Reduced 50%

Waste Diversion > 70%

Greenhouse Gas

Emissions

Reduced 75%

“Real Food” > 30%

Construction LEED Platinum

Renewables > 25%

Sustainable

Commuting

> 80%

1 Institution 93 Institutions

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Op

era

tio

ns

Acad

em

ics

En

ga

gem

en

t

Ad

min

istr

ati

on

Points by Category

Gold Target

Planning Case Study




Metrics








Climate Action Plan

21


Challenges in Sustainability Planning

22

2015 AASHE Membership Survey

A Vision for the Future

23

Setting Achievable Goals

24

Sustainability Plan

Using STARS as a Framework

Plan

ImplementMeasure

Questions?

26

data & sustainability: how the right data creates success

Education