Greenhouse Gas Inventory - Sustain Appalachian

42 Pages·2011·2.19 MB·English

by  Bob Blythe

UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA WILMINGTON
Greenhouse Gas Inventory
November 2011
Prepared for UNCW by
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
University of North Carolina Wilmington would like to acknowledge the following
individuals for their time and expertise in contributing to this report:

Terry Blake, Facilities Administration
Michelle Dickens, Business Applications and Access Management
Pamela Elliot, Environmental Health & Safety
Rita Gordon, Auxiliary Services and Sustainability Committee
Stan Harts, Environmental Health & Safety and Sustainability Committee
Whitney Lawson, Office of Institutional Research
Starkey McGowan, Purchasing Services
Gail Morrison, Facilities Administration
Bart Neu, Parking and Transportation Services
Diane Reed, Career Center and Sustainability Committee
Ed Samuels, Office of Facilities
Roger Shaw, Geography-Geology and Sustainability Committee
Jay Styron, Marine Operations, Center for Marine Science
Robert Warren, Physical Plant

UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA WILMINGTON GREENHOUSE GAS INVENTORY 2011
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Executive Summary .......................................................................................................... 1
1 Introduction and Background ................................................................................ 7
1.1 Climate Change and Greenhouse Gases ..................................................... 7
1.2 UNCW’s Sustainability Initiatives ....................................................................... 9
1.2.1 Performance Contracting ........................................................................... 9
1.2.2 Green Building for New and Renovated Facilities ................................... 9
1.2.3 Expanded Transportation Options ........................................................... 10
1.2.4 Improved Recycling Initiatives .................................................................. 10
1.3 Sustainability Committee ................................................................................ 11
2 Inventory Methodology ......................................................................................... 12
2.1 Protocol ............................................................................................................. 12
2.2 Greenhouse Gases .......................................................................................... 14
2.3 Global Warming Potential and Carbon Dioxide Equivalent ..................... 14
2.4 Scopes and Emission Sources......................................................................... 14
2.5 Data Collection, Calculations and Tools ...................................................... 15
3 Campus Overview.................................................................................................. 17
4 Greenhouse Gas Emissions .................................................................................... 18
4.1 Building Energy ................................................................................................. 20
4.1.1 Natural Gas, Propane, and Residual Oil ................................................. 20
4.1.2 Purchased Electricity .................................................................................. 21
4.2 Transportation ................................................................................................... 23
4.2.1 University Fleet ............................................................................................. 23
4.2.2 Student and Faculty/Staff Commuting ................................................... 24
4.2.3 University Financed Travel ......................................................................... 26
4.3 Other .................................................................................................................. 28
4.3.1 Refrigerants .................................................................................................. 28
4.3.2 Fertilizers ....................................................................................................... 29
4.3.3 Solid Waste .................................................................................................. 30
4.3.4 Wastewater ................................................................................................. 31
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA WILMINGTON GREENHOUSE GAS INVENTORY 2011
4.3.5 Purchased Goods ....................................................................................... 31
5 Benchmarking ......................................................................................................... 32
6 Next Steps ................................................................................................................ 35
Contact Information ...................................................................................................... 36
Acronyms ......................................................................................................................... 36

UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA WILMINGTON GREENHOUSE GAS INVENTORY 2011
LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES
Table 1. FY’10 GHG Emissions .......................................................................................... 4
Table 2. Alignment with Key GHG Protocol Requirements ....................................... 13
Table 3. FY’10 GHG Emissions ........................................................................................ 19
Table 4. University Financed Travel Data .................................................................... 27
Table 5. GHG Inventories of Peer Higher Education Institutions ............................... 33

Figure 1. Fiscal Year 2010 GHG Emissions by Sector .................................................... 3
Figure 2. Fiscal Year 2007 to Fiscal Year 2010 GHG Emissions ..................................... 3
Figure 3. Gross Scope 1 and 2 Emissions per FTE Student............................................ 5
Figure 4. Concentrations of Greenhouse Gases (IPCC) ............................................. 7
Figure 5. GHG Inventory Protocol and Tools ............................................................... 12
Figure 6. Emission Scopes .............................................................................................. 15
Figure 7. Relationship of IMS and CA-CP .................................................................... 16
Figure 8. Aerial Photo of Main Campus ....................................................................... 17
Figure 9. Fiscal Year 2010 GHG Emissions by Sector .................................................. 18
Figure 10. Fiscal Year 2007 to Fiscal Year 2010 GHG Emissions ................................. 19
Figure 11. Stationary Fuels Emissions Trend .................................................................. 20
Figure 12. Electricity Emissions Trend ............................................................................ 21
Figure 13. Vehicle Fleet Emissions Trend ...................................................................... 24
Figure 14. Gross Scope 1 and 2 Emissions per FTE Student ....................................... 33
Figure 15. Gross Scope 1 and Scope 2 Emissions per Square Foot .......................... 34
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA WILMINGTON GREENHOUSE GAS INVENTORY 2011

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
This GHG inventory represents an important piece of University of North Carolina
Wilmington’s (UNCW’s) efforts to be a leader in higher education sustainability by
measuring its contribution of GHG emissions. It will be a tool for UNCW to identify,
prioritize, and track efforts to reduce GHG emissions over time.
The inventory indicates that in fiscal year 2010 (July 2009 to June 2010), UNCW
was responsible for 69,621 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (MTCO e)
2
emissions. Electricity consumption, the single largest source of emissions,
accounted for 55.2 percent and natural gas consumption, the second largest
source, accounted for 9.9 percent. Both sources are primarily consumed in
1 UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA WILMINGTON GREENHOUSE GAS INVENTORY 2011
buildings and together account for over 60 percent of all emissions at the
university. Understanding the sources and scale of the university’s emissions is the
foundation upon which informed strategies can be developed to reduce
emissions.
Boundaries
The inventory includes all activities and facilities under the operational control of
UNCW, including the main campus, the Center for Marine Science, and a
number of leased and owned facilities at dispersed locations, including the
Harbor Island Research Facility, Aquarius Reef Base in Key Largo, and the Airlie
Commons.
Scope
Three emission scopes are addressed in the inventory. Scope 1 emission sources
− those that occur directly on UNCW campuses − include natural gas, fleet
vehicles, refrigerants, and fertilizer application. The Scope 2 emission source −
indirect emissions from electricity generation − is purchased electricity. Scope 3
emission sources − indirect emissions occurring off campus that are the result of
activities or demand generated by UNCW − include faculty/staff and student
commuting, directly financed air travel and other travel, paper purchases, and
solid and wastewater disposal.
Timeframe
The inventory includes fiscal year 2006 through fiscal year 2010. Data were
consistently available across all emission sources for fiscal years 2007 through
2010.
Methodology
Though UNCW has not signed the American College & University President’s
Climate Commitment (ACUPCC) to date, the inventory was prepared according
to the guidance of ACUPCC to prepare for that possibility. The Clean Air-Cool
Planet Campus Carbon Calculator™ (CA-CP) Version 6.6 was used to generate
the inventory. This tool generally follows the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Protocol
and is designed for college and university campuses. It provides a consistent
inventory approach for the more than 600 signatories of ACUPCC.
Results
UNCW’s GHG emissions in fiscal year 2010 were estimated to be 69,621 MTCO e.
2
These emissions result from a number of sources as portrayed in Figure 1.
Emissions from energy use in buildings accounts for 65.1 percent of the inventory,
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA WILMINGTON GREENHOUSE GAS INVENTORY 2011 2
transportation emissions account for 26.4percent, and other sources made up
the remaining 8.5 percent.

Figure 1. Fiscal Year 2010 GHG Emissions by Sector

The emissions at UNCW were fairly constant over the period from fiscal year 2007
to fiscal year 2010 as portrayed in Figure 2 while square footage and student
enrollment increased. Study abroad travel data was not available for FY’07 or
FY’08 resulting in lower emissions shown for those years.

Figure 2. Fiscal Year 2007 to Fiscal Year 2010 GHG Emissions
3 UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA WILMINGTON GREENHOUSE GAS INVENTORY 2011
The emission sources that constitute the inventory are identified by scope in
Table 1.

Table 1. Fiscal Year 2010 GHG Emissions
Scope eCO Percent
2
(metric
tons)
Building Natural Gas, Propane, Residual Oil 1 6,910 9.9%
Energy Purchased Electricity 2 38,422 55.2%
Transportation University Fleet 1 812 1.2%
Faculty / Staff Commuting 3 4,708 6.8%
Student Commuting 3 4,370 6.3%
Directly Financed Air Travel 3 3,724 5.3%
Other Directly Financed Travel 3 64 0.1%
Study Abroad Air Travel 3 4,714 6.8%
Other Refrigerants and Chemicals 1 1,943 2.8%
Fertilizer 1 24 0.03%
Solid Waste 3 -328 -0.5%
Wastewater 3 41 0.06%
Paper Purchasing 3 417 0.6%
Scope 2 Transmission and Distribution
3 3,800 5.5%
Losses
TOTAL 69,621 100.0%

Benchmarking
To provide context for UNCW’s GHG emissions, comparisons were made with
some peer and other institutions. These comparisons were made for the most
recent year of inventory data available. All inventory data were obtained from
ACUPCC’s Reporting System and all of the peer institutions also used CA-CP to
complete their inventories.
Comparisons are only made for Gross Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions since data
sources and quality for Scope 3 emissions can vary more widely between
institutions.
On the basis of full time equivalent (FTE) students, UNCW’s emissions are about
average when compared with the peer schools.

UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA WILMINGTON GREENHOUSE GAS INVENTORY 2011 4