ACUPCC Reporting System

GHG Report for Furman University

Submitted on January 14, 2012; last updated on September 27, 2012

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) 20,149 metric tons of CO2e 6.8 metric tons of CO2e 8.7 metric tons of CO2e 0%
Gross emissions (Scopes 1 + 2 + 3) 28,242 metric tons of CO2e 9.5 metric tons of CO2e 12.1 metric tons of CO2e 0%
Net emissions 28,205 metric tons of CO2e 9.5 metric tons of CO2e 12.1 metric tons of CO2e N/A

Emissions Inventory Methodology and Boundaries

Start date of the 12-month period covered in this report July 1, 2009
Consolidation methodology used to determine organizational boundaries Operational control approach
If any institution-owned, leased, or operated buildings or other holdings that should fall within the organizational boundaries are omitted, briefly explain why.

Furman included all university-owned, leased or operated buildings in this report with the exception of the following:
1)3200 square feet of off-campus staff housing and
2)6000 square feet of unconditioned warehouse space north of campus.
These holdings were omitted from this report due to the absence of reliable/valid data. The inventory of these buildings changes frequently which is challenging to track.
Emissions calculation tool used Clean Air-Cool Planet
Please describe why this tool was selected.

Furman followed the recommendation of the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment (ACUPCC).
Please describe the source(s) of the emissions coefficients used.

Clean Air-Cool Planet (CA-CP) Campus Carbon Calculator's default emissions coefficients
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)
Please describe the process of conducting the inventory.

During the summer of 2011, Shi Center Student Fellow Anne-Marie Melief collected all inventory data from various departments on campus and completed the inventory throughout the fall of 2011.
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
Please describe any data limitations related to this submission and any major assumptions made in response to these limitations.

Major assumptions in this greenhouse gas inventory include:
*Commuting: Student commuting was estimated based on survey results and the percentage of students who live off campus (the vast majority of Furman students live on campus and are not allowed to move their cars from their designated parking lot during class hours). Faculty and staff commuting estimates from 2009 were used; this estimate was calculated by assuming every employee (including adjunct and part-time employees) make one trip to the university each day; total miles traveled were calculated using GIS and national average fuel efficiency.
*Solid waste: Furman's total waste is estimated from data on the number of tips from its waste management provider.

Emissions Data

Emissions from the following sources (in metric tons of CO2e)

Scope 1 Emissions
Stationary Combustion 5,087.0 metric tons of CO2e
Mobile Combustion 289.0 metric tons of CO2e
Process Emissions 0.0 metric tons of CO2e
Fugitive Emissions 324.0 metric tons of CO2e
Total Scope 1 emissions 5,700.0 metric tons of CO2e
Scope 2 Emissions
Purchased Electricity 14,449.0 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 14,449.0 metric tons of CO2e
Scope 3 Emissions
Commuting 2,573.0 metric tons of CO2e
Air Travel 3,556.0 metric tons of CO2e
Solid Waste 206.0 metric tons of CO2e
Other Directly Financed Travel 284.0 metric tons of CO2e
Paper 45.0 metric tons of CO2e
Scope 2 T&D Losses 1,429.0 metric tons of CO2e
Total Scope 3 emissions 8,093.0 metric tons of CO2e
Biogenic Emissions
Biogenic Emissions from Stationary Combustion No information provided
Biogenic Emissions from Mobile Combustion No information provided

Mitigation Data

Carbon Offsets
Carbon offsets purchased No information provided
Offset verification program(s) No information provided
Description of offsets purchased (including vendor, project source, etc.)

No information provided
Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs)
Total RECs purchased None kWh
Percent of total electricity consumption mitigated through the purchase of RECs None %
Emissions reductions due to the purchase of RECs No information provided
REC verification program(s) No information provided
Description of RECs purchased (including vendor, project source, etc.)

No information provided
Sequestration and Carbon Storage
Sequestration due to land owned by the institution 32.0 metric tons of CO2e
Description of how sequestration was calculated

Campus Grounds (within the Division of Facilities Services) is emphasizing additional vegetative and canopy cover in all current and future plans. There are 16 acres at the golf course that are now managed for habitat for wildlife.

Carbon storage due to composting 5.0 metric tons of CO2e

Normalization and Contextual Data

Building Space
Gross square feet of building space 2,328,797.0 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) 2964.0
Residential Students No information provided
Full-time Commuter Students No information provided
Part-time Commuter Students No information provided
Non-Credit Students No information provided
Full-time Faculty 246
Part-time Faculty 27
Full-time Staff No information provided
Part-time Staff No information provided
Other Contextual Data
Endowment Size No information provided
Heating Degree Days No information provided
Cooling Degree Days No information provided
Please describe any circumstances specific to your institution that provide context for understanding your greenhouse gas emissions this year.

No information provided

Supporting Documentation

Completed inventory narrative No information provided
Completed inventory calculator Download

Auditing and Verification

These emissions data have been audited, verified, or peer-reviewed.
Please briefly describe this verification, if any.

After all data was collected by Shi Center Student Fellow Anne-Marie Melief, the data and inventory results were reviewed by Shi Center Associate Director Brittany DeKnight.