GHG Report for Appalachian State University
Submitted on May 27, 2010; last updated on May 27, 2010
Summary Statistics
Making fair comparisons between higher education institutions is always challenging due to the rich diversity of higher education. The unverified nature of the information in this database and unavailability of unbiased normalization metrics means such comparisons are even more difficult. Users should therefore approach direct institution to institution comparisons with caution and recognize that all comparisons between institutions are inherently biased.| Total | Per Full-Time Enrollment | Per 1000 Square Feet | % Offset | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gross emissions (Scopes 1 + 2) | 64,106 metric tons of CO2e | 4.1 metric tons of CO2e | 12.6 metric tons of CO2e | 0% |
| Gross emissions (Scopes 1 + 2 + 3) | 74,437 metric tons of CO2e | 4.7 metric tons of CO2e | 14.6 metric tons of CO2e | 0% |
| Net emissions | 74,325 metric tons of CO2e | 4.7 metric tons of CO2e | 14.6 metric tons of CO2e | N/A |
Emissions Inventory Methodology and Boundaries
| Start date of the 12-month period covered in this report | July 1, 2008 |
| Consolidation methodology used to determine organizational boundaries | Equity share approach |
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If any institution-owned, leased, or operated buildings or other holdings that should fall within the organizational boundaries are omitted, briefly explain why.
We did not omit any of our buildings, either leased or operated, by the university. |
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| Emissions calculation tool used | Clean Air-Cool Planet |
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Please describe why this tool was selected.
Commonly used in higher education; hope to standardize in the UNC school system |
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Please describe the source(s) of the emissions coefficients used.
CA-CP defaults |
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| Which version of IPCC's list of global warming potentials did you use? | Third Assessment Report |
| Who primarily conducted this emissions inventory? | Student researcher(s) |
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Please describe the process of conducting the inventory.
The Office of Sustainability utilized a graduate assistant to collect data. Graduate assistant also drafted a report analyzing the data and approved by the Office of Sustainability. |
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Please describe any emissions sources that were classified as de minimis and explain how a determination of the significance of these emissions was made.
No information provided |
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Please describe any data limitations related to this submission and any major assumptions made in response to these limitations.
Assumptions were made 1) re: wastewater in some facilities that have wells; 2) re: wastewater in facilities where Appalachian leases a portion of the space and does not pay utility bills (included in lease fee); 3) Appalachian uses E10 (10% ethanol; 90% petroleum fuel) for fleet - had to convert E10 usage to MMBTU and list under "Other Fleet Fuel" (conversion factor found at http://www.nrel.gov/biomass/faqs/topic.cfm/topic_id=17); 4) the transportation survey, sent to over 20,000 campus members, did not ask for the mileage traveled for each different mode of transportation, only one mileage from their residence to campus - so if someone drives partway and rides their bicycle the rest of the way, the survey thinks they used both modes for the entire distance between their residence and campus; 5)In calculating directly financed outsourced travel, we found there were personal mileage reimbursement but not other information about mileage driven. |
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Emissions Data
Emissions from the following sources (in metric tons of CO2e)
| Scope 1 Emissions | |
|---|---|
| Stationary Combustion | 21,864.0 metric tons of CO2e |
| Mobile Combustion | 2,372.0 metric tons of CO2e |
| Process Emissions | 0.0 metric tons of CO2e |
| Fugitive Emissions | 402.0 metric tons of CO2e |
| Total Scope 1 emissions | 24,638.0 metric tons of CO2e |
| Scope 2 Emissions | |
| Purchased Electricity | 39,468.0 metric tons of CO2e |
| Purchased Heating | 0.0 metric tons of CO2e |
| Purchased Cooling | 0.0 metric tons of CO2e |
| Purchased Steam | 0.0 metric tons of CO2e |
| Total Scope 2 emissions | 39,468.0 metric tons of CO2e |
| Scope 3 Emissions | |
| Commuting | 3,977.0 metric tons of CO2e |
| Air Travel | 5,764.0 metric tons of CO2e |
| Solid Waste | 590.0 metric tons of CO2e |
| Total Scope 3 emissions | 10,331.0 metric tons of CO2e |
| Biogenic Emissions | |
| Biogenic Emissions from Stationary Combustion | No information provided |
| Biogenic Emissions from Mobile Combustion | 184.0 metric tons of CO2e |
Mitigation Data
| Carbon Offsets | |
|---|---|
| Carbon offsets purchased | 0.0 metric tons of CO2e |
| Offset verification program(s) | No information provided |
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Description of offsets purchased (including vendor, project source, etc.)
Appalachian State Uni does not purchase offsets. |
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| Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) | |
| Total RECs purchased | 6970 kWh |
| Percent of total electricity consumption mitigated through the purchase of RECs | 0.0 % |
| Emissions reductions due to the purchase of RECs | 4.0 metric tons of CO2e |
| REC verification program(s) | No information provided |
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Description of RECs purchased (including vendor, project source, etc.)
The 6970kWh of renewable energy credits were not purchased; they are generated on site. This amount of energy production is exactly what was generated in this reporting year. Currently, Appalachian is committed to creating an offset program whereby money can be reinvested in on-campus renewable energy systems as opposed to subsidizing off-site renewable energy production. |
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| Sequestration and Carbon Storage | |
| Sequestration due to land owned by the institution | 68.0 metric tons of CO2e |
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Description of how sequestration was calculated
Appalachian owns and maintains a forest preserve. According to the EPA a forest in our climate can sequester 0.3 - 2.1 metric tons of CO2 per acre per year for reforestation. Given our clime and the historic logging data, we used 1 MT CO2 per acre per year. |
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| Carbon storage due to composting | 40.0 metric tons of CO2e |
Normalization and Contextual Data
| Building Space | |
|---|---|
| Gross square feet of building space | 5,089,675.0 sq ft |
| Net assignable square feet of laboratory space | No information provided |
| Net assignable square feet of health care space | No information provided |
| Net assignable square feet of residential space | No information provided |
| Population | |
| Total Student Enrollment (FTE) | 15749.0 |
| Residential Students | 5203 |
| Full-time Commuter Students | No information provided |
| Part-time Commuter Students | No information provided |
| Non-Credit Students | No information provided |
| Full-time Faculty | 779 |
| Part-time Faculty | 353 |
| Full-time Staff | 2408 |
| Part-time Staff | 435 |
| Other Contextual Data | |
| Endowment Size | No information provided |
| Heating Degree Days | 6896 |
| Cooling Degree Days | 345 |
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Please describe any circumstances specific to your institution that provide context for understanding your greenhouse gas emissions this year.
No information provided |
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Supporting Documentation
| Completed inventory narrative |
Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory: A comparative survey of emissions from year 2006 to 2009 Download |
| Completed inventory calculator | Download |