<< Back to Report Card
With the publication of the College Sustainability Report Card 2010, more than 1,100 school survey responses from over 300 institutions are now available online. In total, these surveys offer more than 10,000 pages of data collected from colleges and universities during the summer of 2009. To access surveys from other schools, go to the surveys section of the website. To see grades, or to access additional surveys submitted by this school, please click the "Back to Report Card" link at the beginning or end of the survey.
Name: Dan Garofalo
Title: Environmental Sustainability Coordinate, Penn Facilities and Real Estate Services
Date survey submitted: July 21, 2009; Revised August 18, 2009
ADMINISTRATION
SUSTAINABILITY POLICIES
1) Does your school have its own formal sustainability policy?
[ ] No
[X] Yes. Please describe and provide URL, if available: http://www.upenn.edu/sustainability/our-sustainability-commitment.html
In addition, Penn’s Climate Action Plan (as part of our ACUPCC submission) will be submitted on September 15, 2009.
2) Has the president of your institution signed the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment (ACUPCC)?
[ ] No
[X] Yes. If completed, please provide the date the GHG Report was submitted to the ACUPCC: September 15, 2008
3) Has your institution signed the Talloires Declaration?
[X] No
[ ] Yes
4) Is there a sustainability component in your institution's master plan and/or strategic plan (check all that apply)?
[ ] No
[X] Yes, in the master plan. Please describe and provide URL, if available: http://www.pennconnects.upenn.edu/growing_greener/growing_greener.php
[ ] Yes, in the strategic plan. Please describe and provide URL, if available:
ADVISORY COUNCIL
5) Does your school have a council or committee that advises on and/or implements policies and programs related to sustainability?
[ ] No
[X] Yes
If you answered "No" to question 5, please proceed directly to question 11.
6) Please provide the name of the committee and list the number of meetings held since August 2008.
Name: Environmental Sustainability Advisory Committee (ESAC)
Number of meetings: There have been eight meetings of the entire ESAC. Additionally, each of the six subcommittees met on average eight times during the past academic year.
7) Please provide number of stakeholder representatives on the committee.
[5] Administrators
[10] Faculty
[12] Staff
[11] Students
Additionally, there are six subcommittees of the ESAC (Academics / Energy & Utilities / Built Environment / Transportation / Waste & Recycling / Communications) with a total of 50 additional members that comprise a similar make-up as the ESAC committee.
8) Please provide the name of the chair(s) of the committee for the 2009-2010 academic year, and indicate which stakeholder group the chair(s) represents.
If 2009-2010 academic year information is not yet available, please provide information for 2008-2009 instead.
Name of chair(s):
Position(s) (e.g., administrator, faculty, staff, student):
ESAC Chair: Vice President of Facilities and Real Estate Services, Anne Papageorge
ESAC Subcommittee Chairs:
|
CHAIRS 2008-2009
|
ROLE
|
POSITION
|
|
Marsha Lester
|
Academics (co-Chair)
|
Chair of the Chemistry Dept (faculty)
|
|
Andrew Binns
|
Academics (co-Chair)
|
Vice Provost & Medical School Faculty
|
|
David Hollenberg
|
Built Environment (co-Chair)
|
University Architect (staff)
|
|
Eric Weckel
|
Built Environment (co-Chair)
|
Director of Design & Space Planning, School of Medicine (staff)
|
|
Anthony Sorrentino
|
Communications (Chair)
|
Director of Communications, Office of the Executive Vice President
|
|
William Braham
|
Energy & Utilities (co-Chair)
|
Chair of the Architecture Department / Co-Chair of the TC Chan Center for Energy and Simulation (faculty)
|
|
Joe Monahan
|
Energy & Utilities (co-Chair)
|
University Engineer (staff)
|
|
Vukan Vuchic
|
Transportation (co-Chair)
|
Professor of Transportation Planning, School of Engineering and Applied Science
|
|
Larry Bell
|
Transportation (co-Chair)
|
Director of Penn Transit, Business Services Division (staff)
|
|
Kyle Rosato
|
Waste & Recycling (Chair)
|
Director of Waste Management, Environmental Health and Radiation Safety
|
9) To whom does the committee report (e.g., president, vice president)?
Reports and recommendations are forwarded each semester to the University President and to the University Executive Vice President. The Chair of the Environmental Sustainability Advisory Committee is the VP of Facilities and Real Estate Services, Anne Papageorge.
10) Please list key issues/programs that the committee has addressed or implemented since August 2008.
Key issues/programs that the group has addressed/implemented since August 2008:
The recommendations from the six ESAC subcommittees were referenced to the carbon inventory developed by Penn’s TC Chan Center to create a detailed plan for emissions reductions, including multi-year forecasts for carbon emissions reduction. Over the course of the spring of 2009, the ESAC recommendations were vetted with key stakeholder groups across campus, including faculty, senior administration, and student groups. The advice of the committee included focus on both operational initiatives as well as individual behavior change to promote efficiency and conservation. A full outline of activities runs some 20 pages in the Climate Action Plan, but some highlights include:
-
Utilities & Operations subcommittee: Eliminate the growth in electrical usage in existing buildings through education and management; improve the efficiency of utility distribution systems; and adopt conservation measures such as building recomissioning, metering, and incentives for better energy performance. The immediate conservation goal for fiscal year 2010 is a reduction of 5% in energy use for the entire Penn campus.
-
Built Environment subcommittee: Adopt LEED Silver Certification, with Penn-specific goals, as a minimum standard of new construction and major renovations; provide training to Penn staff on sustainable design and construction practices; and implement sustainable protocols for site planning and landscape maintenance. The goal is to create and maintain a sustainable campus environment, decrease building energy consumption, and increase education and awareness of sustainable design.
-
Transportation subcommittee: Increase use of public transportation; improve bicycle and pedestrian environments; and improve the fuel efficiency of Penn’s vehicle fleet. The goal is to emphasize a quality pedestrian environment with safe, efficient transportation services for the university community.
-
Waste & Recycling subcommittee: Institute a comprehensive waste reduction and recycling policy; and provide widespread education about why and how Penn recycles. The goal is to double Penn’s recycling rate to 40% by 2014.
-
Academics subcommittee: Launch a new University minor in Organizations and Environmental Management; provide sustainability workshops for faculty and graduate students; and expand student participation in sustainability research. The goal is to make sustainability part of the curriculum and educational experience for all Penn students.
-
Communications subcommittee: Establish reinforce messages that individual behavior is critical in meeting our greenhouse gas reduction, recycling, conservation, and transportation goals; ensure that the Green Campus Partnership website is an accurate and user-friendly repository of valuable information; and create events that galvanize the campus community and bring attention to the campaign. The goal is to develop clear, concise, and accurate information about Penn’s sustainability commitments, while encouraging Penn’s community to participate in continuing learning opportunities in this field.
Progress made on each of these issues since August 2008:
-
Utilities & Operations subcommittee: Penn has conducted “recomissioning” studies of 18 buildings, and has implemented the recommendations on 9 of them so far, resulting in energy and cost savings of over $1M annually. Training of O&M staff has begun, with an outside consultant providing content for sustainability training for housekeepers, service engineers, and O&M supervisory staff.
-
Built Environment subcommittee: Penn has broken ground on three LEED-targeted projects, including one Platinum LEED project at the Morris Arboretum. LEED Green Associates training is scheduled for July 30, 2009, for over 65 facilities staff, including every project manager in the central facilities group, plus facilities staff from the two largest (of 12) schools: Medicine and Arts & Sciences.
-
Transportation subcommittee: Working with the City of Philadelphia Streets Department, enhanced pedestrian signals have been installed at five key intersections. Scheduled 2010 work includes a new 50-bike corral adjacent to the main library, to provide safe, convenient, well-lit bike parking that is under observation 24 hours a day by the campus security closed circuit video (two security officers monitor the 40+ cameras round the clock), and a new crosswalk at a key central campus intersection (34th & Smith Walk)
-
Waste & Recycling subcommittee: The Green Campus Partnership has arranged for community collection points for used CFLs, batteries, and cell phones at four drop-off points: three apartment building lobbies and the office of the University City District, the special services district headquarters one block from campus.
-
Academics subcommittee: Students are able to register to the new University minor in Organizations and Environmental Management starting in the fall, 2009.; the new Masters in Ecological Design accepts its first candidates also in the fall of 2009.
-
SUSTAINABILITY STAFF
11) Does your school employ sustainability staff (excluding student employees and interns)?
[ ] No
[X] Yes. Please provide titles and number of sustainability staff.
[4] Number of full-time staff (in FTE).
Titles:
- Environmental Sustainability Coordinator
- Carbon Reduction and ACUPCC Liaison Research
- Sustainability Initiatives Associate
- Sustainability Communications Associate
[10] Number of part-time staff (in FTE).
Within the facilities division (these employees are full-time summer employees, and are comprised of recent graduates (masters and bachelor degrees) and current undergrad and graduate students:
- Neighborhood Sustainability Initiatives
- Waste and Recycling Initiatives
- Sustainability Week and Outreach Initiatives
- Lifecycle Costing Initiatives
- Energy Monitoring and Conservation Research
Within the Division of Business Services (these are full-time professionals who spend 20 to 50% of their time on sustainability issues):
Director of Dining
Director of Communications & External Relations
Director of Marketing
Director of Purchasing, Penn Purchasing Services
Within the Office of the Executive Vice President
The Director of External Affairs is working about 15% of his time on a coordinating comprehensive, multi-media environmental communications plan
12) Does the head of the sustainability staff report directly to the president or another high-level administrator (e.g., vice president, vice chancellor)?
[ ] N/A
[ ] No
[X] Yes. Please describe: The Environmental Sustainability Coordinator reports to the Vice President of Facilities and Real Estate Services, Anne Papageorge.
OFFICE OR DEPARTMENT
13) Does your school have an office or department specifically dedicated to furthering sustainability on campus?
[X] No. The Sustainability Team is housed within Facilities and Real Estate Services. As noted above, significant responsibility for sustainability activities also are shared with Penn’s Division of Business Services (dining, transportation, housing, purchasing) and the Office of the Executive VP (communications, marketing, external relations), although no personnel in these divisions have a “sustainability” title
[ ] Yes. Please describe (including name of office or department and year created):
WEBSITE
14) Does your school have a website detailing its sustainability initiatives?
[ ] No
[X] Yes. Please provide URL: http://www.upenn.edu/sustainability
GREEN PURCHASING
15) Does your school have a formal green purchasing policy?
[ ] No
[X] Yes. Please describe policy and provide URL to full policy, if available:
Purchasing Services is committed to environmental stewardship through green purchasing, conservation, and construction designed to conserve natural resources and preserving the environment in support of the President's commitment to American College & University Presidents Climate Commitment. Environmental stewardship initiatives include the purchase of recycled content products, environmentally preferable products and services, bio-based products, energy and water-efficient products, alternate fuel vehicles, products using renewable energy, and disposal of solid waste.
http://www.purchasing.upenn.edu/social/green-purchasing.php
16) Does your school purchase ENERGY STAR qualified products?
[ ] No
[X] Some. Please describe: When possible, the University purchases Energy Star qualified products such as printers, computers, appliances, etc.
[ ] All
17) Does your school purchase environmentally preferable paper products (e.g., 100 percent post-consumer recycled content, certified by the Forest Stewardship Council)?
[ ] No
[X] Some. Please describe: All University-branded stationary is printed on 30% PCR chlorine-free paper, FSC and Green Seal certified, and the electricity used to manufacture this paper is offset with 100% Green-e certified wind certificates. About 40% of plain printer/copier paper purchased has 30% PCR or greater.
[ ] All. Please describe:
18) Does your school purchase Green Seal, Environmental Choice certified, or bio-renewable cleaning products?
[ ] No
[ ] Some. Please describe:
[X] All. Please describe: As green products become available within the product lines we have established, we do purchase them as part of an ever increasing portfolio.
19) Are your school's computer/electronics purchase decisions made in accordance with standards such as the Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT)?
[ ] No
[X] Some. Please describe: Out of 1,455 desktop computer units, laptops and notebooks, and LCD and CRT monitors purchased, 71 were EPEAT silver and 1,312 were EPEAT Gold totaling 95% of purchases. Additionally, Penn Computing’s Green I.T. program has established recommended guidelines for IT purchases that include Energy Star 4.0 compliant desktops, replacing CRT monitors with LCD monitors, among other recommendations. (http://www.upenn.edu/computing/greenit/purchasing.html)
Beyond purchasing, Green I.T. provides resources to help users throughout the University to "green up" their computing operations, by reducing energy consumption and producing less e-waste. (http://www.upenn.edu/computing/greenit/index.html)
[ ] All
20) Does your school use only pesticides that meet the standards for organic crop production set by the U.S. Department of Agriculture or Canadian Organic Standards (excluding on-campus farms)?
[ ] No
[X] Some. Please describe:
There is no standard or regular use of pesticides or herbicides on campus; instead, pesticides are only used in response to particular situations that arise and on an as-needed basis. When possible, Penn utilizes organic pesticides, such as dormant oil spray, that are completely biodegradable.
An example of a non-organic pesticide that was used this past year (and not previously for 10 years prior) was propiconzaole – a specific pesticide to target the beetle that carries Dutch Elm disease. This systemic pesticide is not sprayed or broadcast to prevent damage adjacent environments, but is injected into the two historic American Elm trees that were planted at the establishment of the University’s West Philadelphia campus in 1780s, and flank the entry to College Hall, as well as to other heritage Elms on campus.
[ ] All
CLIMATE CHANGE & ENERGY
GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS INVENTORY
21) Has your school completed a greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions inventory?
Please check all that apply.
[ ] No.
[ ] In progress. Please describe status and provide estimated completion date:
[X] Yes. Please provide total annual GHG emissions (in metric tons of CO2e). Also, include the start date for each year as well as the URL to each inventory, if available online, or attach the document.
FY2008:
· Total Emissions: 355,800 MTCO2e
· Net Emissions: 250,500 MTCO2e (Due to purchase of Renewable Energy Credits (RECs) that offset approximately 30% of the gross emissions)
· Start Date: July 1, 2007
FY2007:
· Total Emissions: 362,143 MTCO2e
· Net Emissions: 296,594 MTCO2e (Due to purchase of RECs)
· Start Date: July 1, 2006
FY2006:
· Total Emissions: 351,150 MTCO2e
· Net Emissions: 285,602 MTCO2e (Due to purchase of RECs)
· Start Date: July 1, 2005
FY2005:
§ Total Emissions: 343,173 MTCO2e
· Net Emissions: 321,324 MTCO2e (Due to purchase of RECs)
· Start Date: July 1, 2004
COMMITMENT TO GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS REDUCTION
The purchase of carbon offsets does not count toward greenhouse gas (GHG) reductions for this indicator. They are counted in a subsequent indicator.
22) Has your school made a commitment to reducing GHG emissions by a specific amount?
[ ] No
[X] Yes. Please list details.
Target 1:
Reduction level: 5% reduction in electrical consumption on campus
Baseline year: 2007
Target date: 2010
Target 2:
Reduction level: ~20% overall carbon emissions (exact level to be determined as part of the ACUPCC submission by September 15, 2009.
Baseline year: 2007
Target date: 2014
Target 3:
Reduction level: 100%
Baseline year: 2007
Target date: 2050
In accordance with the ACUPCC President’s Climate Commitment, the long-term goal is to achieve climate neutrality for operation energy by 2050. The strategies for achieving this reduction have been proposed through the TC Chan Center Consultancy Reports, our internal consultants within the Penn School of Design.
If you answered only "No" or "In progress" to question 21, please now skip to question 27.
REALIZED GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS REDUCTIONS
23) Has your school achieved a reduction in GHG emissions?
[ ] No
[X] Yes. Please list details.
Percentage reduced: 1.75%
Baseline year: 2007
Date achieved: July 2008
24) Please provide the total heating and cooling degree days averaged over the past three years.
Data on total degree heating and cooling days is available at: http://www.degreedays.net/. This information will be used to help reduce bias between schools in different climates.
Cooling degree days average over the past three years: 1,539
Heating degree days average over the past three years: 4,453
25) Please provide GHG emissions figures on a per-thousand-square-foot basis for the past three years.
Per-Thousand-Square-Foot Emissions = Total CO2e in metric tons / Total maintained building space in thousands of square feet.
2008: 21
2007: 24.8
2006: 23.9
Note: The Ivy+ Sustainability Working Group (in place since 2006) has considered similar benchmarking exercises to compare performance and share best practices. Factors considered were geographic location (annual degree days), locales (key for transportation emissions), density of campus area, research universities vs. teaching colleges, and the existence of a medical or veterinary schools or departments within the university. The medical and research aspects were particularly important considerations. For example, one metric considered was “lab intensity,” and is derived from the number of fume hoods per square foot of campus space.
The Ivy+ Sustainability Working Group decided not to use emissions/GSF or emissions/student due to the additional explanation required to interpret them in their respective institutional context. The Ivy+ Working group decided that a sound metric is that of trends - the trend of each individual school and the aggregate emissions.
26) Please provide GHG emissions figures on a per-full-time-student basis for the past three years.
Per-Student Emissions = Total CO2e in metric tons / Total number of full-time enrolled students.
2008: 12.64
2007: 15.21
2006: 14.65
Note: this data is based on the number of full-time graduate, professional, and undergraduate students.
ENERGY EFFICIENCY
27) What programs or technologies has your school implemented to improve energy efficiency (e.g., cogeneration plant, retro-commissioning of HVAC systems, performing system tune-ups, temperature setbacks)?
- Centralized steam and chilled water represent a 20-year planning effort to create a highly efficient campus-wide system that eliminates hundreds of individual boilers and air conditioning units. Efficiency gains are both from energy savings and greatly reduced maintenance burden.
- The centralized steam heating system at Penn connects to about 70% of the buildings and provides approximately 90% of the total heat for the campus. The steam is purchased from Tri-Gen’s Gray’s Ferry combined heat and power (CHP) plant across the Schuylkill River in South Philadelphia. The annual energy imported as steam used for heating typically represents about 46% of the total imported utility energy. In 1997 the Gray’s Ferry plant was upgraded with more efficient equipment and its fuel switched from distillate oil to natural gas, which is the cleanest of the fossil fuels in carbon emissions. Even more importantly, it became a combined heat and power facility at that time, providing electricity directly into the PJM grad. This process significantly reduced the carbon emissions associated with each form of resultant energy – both electricity and steam.
- The University’s air conditioning is handled by a central chilled water plant system which allows for superior cooling efficiency. Chilled water is pumped from two major plants to the campus buildings via underground water mains. The chiller plants are equipped with the capacity to monitor consumption levels to reduce energy cost during the winter, spring, and fall seasons by using the cool ambient air to cool the chilled water. We use varying flow of condenser water in the condenser towers to drive down the condenser water, to pre-cool the chiller refrigerant to improve efficiency. In addition, one of the chiller plants has an ice tank, where a glycol mix is chilled to 22 degrees Fahrenheit to freeze the water at night when electricity rates are lower. The two ice tanks, each 272,500 gallons, have an internal melt capacity of 21,560 ton-hrs.
- Penn is currently implementing a comprehensive lab air monitoring program, using the AirCuity lab ventilation product. The AirCuity system provides central computerized monitoring (every six seconds) of multiple lab spaces and vivaria to evaluate airborne contaminants, and automatically adjust air flow rates in response to impurities detected. By reducing air changes per hour and regulating ventilation rates on an as-needed basis, the system reduces energy use for fans, pumps, and other air handling equipment, as well as the need to refrigerate or warm air delivered to the occupied spaces. As a pilot, an Aircuity system was installed in one vivarium suite in Hill Pavilion Vet Labs, and a Wet Lab Suite in Lynch Life Sciences Building in 2008. Since the installation of the pilot Aircuity system, significant energy savings have been realized in addition with no deterioration in indoor air quality, with estimated payback periods in less than two years. The pilot program is now being expanded to other vivaria as well as to the Jerome Fisher Medical Laboratory Tower, now under construction. The $650,000+ installation in the Jerome Fisher Tower will be recouped in estimated 2.2 years of energy savings.
- Through Penn’s TC Chan Center consultancy, Penn has carried out extensive HVAC recomissioning work and has investigated how to optimize building controls. The facilities operations department is currently implementing Chan’s recommendations in nine existing buildings. To date, Penn has achieved savings totaling $941,000 and an additional $600,000 in energy savings are predicted once all the retrofits have been completed. The project will be expanded to address seven additional buildings in 2010.
- Penn commits significant resources to sustainable retrofits of its buildings. Over the past decade, Penn has averaged about $100,000 annually on building retrofits and renovations. Additionally, Penn dedicates $1M annually to carry out energy conservation in campus laboratories.
ENERGY CONSERVATION
28) Do you facilitate programs that encourage members of the campus community to reduce energy use (e.g., cash incentives, signs reminding individuals to turn off lights and appliances)?
[ ] No
[X] Yes. Please describe:
Penn has an extremely decentralized cost allocation model. Each school and center is charged a portion of the overall utility bill based on the number of students, income, building area square footage, and weighted by building age and system technology. The annual cost is averaged over 4 years; however, a new system under consideration for FY2010 will return any reductions due to efficiency measures to each school or center in the form of prioritized deferred maintenance implementation. In this way, each school and center (Dean or Vice President, etc) has a direct incentive to save energy in order to improve the physical condition for their teaching and learning / research / administrative space. This system will be being publicized through the Office of Executive Vice President Communications Team.
RENEWABLE ENERGY GENERATION
29) Does your school generate renewable electricity?
[X] No
[ ] Yes. Please specify percentage of overall electricity generated from each of the following sources and describe details below.
30) Does your school have solar hot water systems?
[X] No. The existence of Penn’s District Heating and Cooling provides cost effective hot water heating as a byproduct of steam distribution.
[ ] Yes. Please specify number of systems and total BTUs generated annually, if available:
RENEWABLE ENERGY PURCHASE
31) Has your school purchased electric energy from renewable sources or renewable energy credits (RECs)?
RECs and electricity from renewable sources must be Green-e certified or meet the requirements of the Green-e standard.
[ ] No
[X] Yes. Please describe.
For the past two years, Penn has been the largest purchaser of wind power RECs among all North American colleges and universities.
Date of most recent contract:
Penn has several overlapping contracts. Our initial purchase of wind power was for 40,000 mWH annually in a ten-year contract beginning in 2003, and we have ramped up our purchasing since to 192,727,000 kWH in 2008
Quantity (kWh): 192,727,000 kWH in 2008
Percentage of your total electric energy use that it represents: 45%
32) Has your school purchased non-electric energy from renewable sources?
[ ] No
[X] Yes. Please describe. We’ve participated in Black Gold’s pilot biodiesel program. Black Gold is an affiliate of the Energy Cooperative, a Philadelphia based non-profit. Black Gold has a proprietary process that makes biodiesel from kitchen waste grease and is in the process of developing commercial-scale applications.
Date of most recent contract: 2008
Quantity (BTUs): Less than 1,500 gallons
Percentage of your total non-electric energy use that it represents: Less than 5%
ON-SITE COMBUSTION
33) Please provide total BTUs of energy for heating and cooling from on-site combustion: A two-megawatt diesel generator is used for peak shaving only that runs less than two weeks per year.
34) Please list each fuel source (e.g., coal, natural gas, oil) and the percent of overall BTUs derived from that source:
FY08:
o 1,628,156 BTUs
o 50%
o 1,412,281 BTUs
o 43%
o 24,135 BTUs
o 1%
o 5,868 BTUs
o less than 1%
o 6,034 BTUs
o less than 1%
o 23,176 BTUs
o 1%
o 148,724.43 BTUs
o 5%
35) Is any on-site combustion for heating and cooling derived from renewable sources?
[X] No
[ ] Yes. Please describe.
Percentage on-site combustion derived from renewable sources: [ %]
Total BTUs of energy generated from renewable sources: [# ]
Description of renewable energy sources used for on-site combustion for heating and cooling:
FOOD & RECYCLING
The food portion of this category is covered in a separate dining survey.
Bon Appetite, Penn’s new food services provider has partnered with Penn’s Office of Sustainability to launch a composting program with Pedal Co-Op, a bicycle hauler in the Philadelphia area. Pedal Co-Op will be picking up one 50 gallon container each day from Penn’s largest student cafeteria, 1920 Commons Dining Hall, via bicycle trailer, an estimated 120 pounds daily. This will result in a weekly reduction in food waste of about 840 lbs. The program is contractred to start on September 15, 2009 and will likely be expanded to other cafeterias in the future.
RECYCLING OF TRADITIONAL MATERIALS
36) Please indicate which traditional materials your institution recycles (check all that apply).
[ ] None
[X] Aluminum
[X] Cardboard
[X] Glass
[X] Paper
[ ] Plastics (all)
[X] Plastics (some) The local recycling plant (Blue Mountain Recycling) only accepts #1 and #2 plastics – the common plastics of beverage and consumer product bottles.
[ X] Other. Please list: Electronic waste – see question 37
37) Diversion rate: [20.53%]
RECYCLING OF ELECTRONIC WASTE
38) Does your institution have an electronics recycling program?
[ ] No
[X] Yes. If available, please indicate the total annual weight or volume of each material collected for recycling or reuse.
[X] Batteries, 4450 lbs (mostly from research & clinical location inside HUP)
[X] Cell phones
[X] Computers, 121,934 lbs
[X] Lightbulbs, 120 lbs or by volume:
1790 x 4ft light tubes
24 x 5ft light tubes
15 x 6ft light tubes
75 x 8 ft lamps
128 x 3 ft lamps
[X] Printer cartridges
[ ] Other E-waste. Please list
In 2009, Penn placed recycling containers for CFLs, rechargeable batteries, and cell phones in the lobbies of all College Residential buildings, to make it easier for students to recycle these products. Penn’s Environmental Health and Radiation Safety team collects and properly disposes of this “Universal Waste” materials.
Plans are underway to repeat this service at several local apartment buildings that rent to Penn students, to capture these “universal waste” products from that population as well. Penn facilities would pick up this material to ensure safe disposal.
COMPOSTING (ASIDE FROM DINING FACILITIES)
39) What percentage of your campus's landscaping waste is composted or mulched?
100% of leaf waste is turned into mulch and redistributed on campus gardens. With the recent renovation of the University’s on-campus composting facility, the program will be expanded to include grass clippings and wood chips.
At the Morris Arboretum, Penn’s arboretum located approximately eight miles from the main campus, a composting and landscape waste yard accepts yard waste and leaves from the entire neighboring municipality of Springfield Township, allowing residents free access to compost and mulch at any time.
Penn’s remote 700-acre large animal facility, the New Bolton Center, recycles 100% of animal waste as fertilizer on pasture fields.
40) Do you provide composting receptacles around campus in locations other than dining halls (e.g., in residence halls, offices, academic buildings)?
[X] No. However, Penn's Facilities and Real Estate Services partnered with local businesses to create the Moravian Street Recycling and Composting Center. At this center, waste from the adjacent restaurants and offices is captured and sorted, including food waste, fryer grease, and recyclables. This project was supported by a grant from the PA Dept of Environmental Protection.
[ ] Yes. Please describe:
SOURCE REDUCTION
41) Do you have any source-reduction initiatives (e.g., end-of-semester furniture or clothing swaps and collections)?
[ ] No
[X] Yes. Penn MOVES collects items left behind by University of Pennsylvania students when they leave campus each spring, diverting this waste from landfills and selling it for reuse. In May 2009, the over 90,000 pounds of items collected raised $30,000 that was donated to United Way for distribution to West Philadelphia charities.
The Penn MarketPlace purchasing website, used by departments across the University, has instituted a “Green Purchasing” icon to identify products with minimal packaging, significant recycled content, and/or is easily recycled, making sustainable purchasing choices easier for business managers and department purchasing agents.
GREEN BUILDING
GREEN BUILDING POLICY
42) Does your school have a formal green building policy?
[ ] No
[X] Yes. Please describe policy and provide URL to the full policy, if available:
The ESAC Built Environment subcommittee’s recommends that all new buildings shall achieve a LEED Silver rating or higher will be included in the forthcoming Climate Action Plan (to be released September 15, 2009). This recommendation has been vetted with the Office of the President, Council of Deans, University Council, and the Trustees Committee on Facilities and Real Estate Services. This subcommittee worked to tailor the LEED checklist to match Penn’s sustainability priorities. http://www.facilities.upenn.edu/stnd_stand.php
All Facilities and Medical School design and construction project managers are scheduled to attend LEED Green Associate training this summer. Other schools will schedule training for personnel this fall. All in-house operations and maintenance staff are receiving sustainability training developed by an outside consultant this summer.
Consistent with the recommendations of the ESAC Built Environment Subcommittee, all new buildings currently under design are registered with the US Green Building Council, and are targeting LEED Silver rating or higher. Project budgets range from about $20M to $300M, with a total aggregate construction value of over $1 billion. See question 43 for details.
In addition, the design for Penn Park, the University’s new 24-acre, $40M recreation and athletics development, while not eligible for LEED certification, is being designed to the highest standards of environmental performance. Designed by Michael Van Valkenburg Associates with input from the University Landscape Architect, the design will transform currently abandoned parking lots (with 70% impervious surface) into a public multi-use park. Its green features include all appropriate and native plant species to reduce maintenance and irrigation needs, LED pedestrian lighting, full accessibility for bicycles with bike parking, comprehensive recycling services, and an underground cistern to capture the first one inch of rain of any rain event in Philadelphia (only about 8 or 10 events exceed this intensity annually). This cistern has over 13,000 cubic feet capacity, and the water will be used for irrigation of the fields. (For more information, see http://www.pennconnects.upenn.edu/growing_greener/water_management.php)
Shoemaker Green is a second landscape project that will aspire to the highest sustainability standards. This three-acre site in front of the historic Palestra Basketball Arena will be transformed from impervious tennis courts and parking into a new campus park, with many of the same features as Penn Park. An RFP for design services was issued during the summer of 2009, and included requirements for sustainability features.
The $22+M annual budget for deferred maintenance is being prioritized to implement energy saving projects first, to provide the greatest return on investment. This investment in Penn’s existing building stock will serve to preserve the unique character of Penn’s historic buildings for another generation of users. As noted by Penn’s University Architect, “The new greenest building is one you don’t have to build.”
All roofing projects are evaluated for the feasibility of green roof replacement and installation. Currently, the University has six green roofs installed on campus, on buildings ranging from nursing education to residence halls.
Finally, for Penn’s off-campus development projects, including a new office tower, parking garage and residences at the periphery of campus, the University’s Real Estate Department is providing guidelines for sustainable design. The office tower project, with a construction value of over $200M, will be developed as a LEED Silver project, with an extensive green roof above a parking garage.
The recently completed Radian apartments ($70M budget, 304,000 sf) provides off-campus housing for over 350 students, and has the following sustainable features:
-
an extensive green roof to help mitigate stormwater surge and counter localized local heat island effect
-
comprehensive recycling infrastructure
-
rain-screen building-envelope technology to reduce solar radiation
-
underground cistern in the courtyard for storing excess stormwater runoff
GREEN BUILDING STANDARDS
43) Please indicate LEED-certified buildings.
[1 completed / 9 pending]
Project LEED Certification Area Project Cost
Perelman Center for Advanced Medicine Silver 360,000 sf $300 M
(completed in 2008)
The ARCH Cultural Center (renovation) Silver 29,000 sf TBD
Morris Arboretum Education Center Platinum 39,900 sf $12M
Hill Square College House Silver 188,000 sf $100M
Fischer Translational Research Tower Silver 500,000 sf $261M
Neurobehavioral Science Center Silver 78,000 sf $78M
Singha Nanotechnology Center Silver 80,000 sf $80M
Law School Teaching and Admin Wing Silver 39,800 sf TBD
Weiss Pavilion Weight Training Facility Gold 22,500 sf $15M
Music Building Renovation & Addition Silver 25,000 sf $13M
Notes: Architect and design teams have been selected for all of these projects, and each has been registered with the USGBC for LEED Certification.
The Weiss Pavilion will be the first renovated sports project in the nation to attain this level, let alone the renovation of one of the county’s most venerable and iconic sports venues.
44) Please indicate buildings that meet LEED certification criteria but are not certified.
[3] Total number of buildings that meet LEED criteria (note, these certification levels are estimated)
Project LEED Criteria Met Area Project Cost
Lynch Biology Labs (2007) Silver 110,000 sf $61M
Hill Pavilion School of Vet Medicine (2008) Silver 125,000 sf 76M
Annenberg Public Policy Center (2009) Silver 52,800 sf $34M
45) Please indicate buildings that are ENERGY STAR labeled.
[N/A] Total number of ENERGY STAR buildings. Please list building names:
EnergyStar rating is not a metric that has been adopted at Penn, and although such a calculation is possible, has not been conducted for Penn’s campus of 12M sf in over 180 buildings ranging in age from 130 years old to current construction.
RENOVATIONS AND RETROFITS
46) Please indicate LEED-EB certified buildings.
[N/A] Total number of LEED-EB certified buildings. LEED EB/OM is not a management tool that has yet been adopted at Penn. See below for description of a pilot study being carried out during the summer of 2009.
47) Please indicate buildings that meet LEED-EB certification criteria but are not certified.
[N/A] Total number of buildings that meet LEED-EB criteria but are not certified.
The sustainability team is carrying out a pilot EB analysis of the Wharton Business School’s Huntsman Hall, a 300,000 sf classroom and office building completed in 2000 to determine feasibility of pursuing LEED EB certification. The Operations and Maintenance Division is reviewing the LEED EB checklist and implementing a variety of initiatives including:
- Green Cleaning
- Building System Optimizations
- Lighting Retrofits
- Recomissioning
- Assessing building operation protocols such as filter replacement schedules, preventative maintenance schedule, and meter installation
The team is also embarking on a LEED-CI feasibility study to explore the costs and complexity of “greening” a 7,000 square foot mechanical system upgrade and office renovation in the Towne Building. This project will serve as a pilot study through which to identify obstacles, opportunities, efficacies, and benefits of carrying out a small renovation project with sustainability as a principle goal.
48) Please indicate renovated buildings that are ENERGY STAR labeled.
[N/A] Total number of renovated buildings that are ENERGY STAR labeled. (See note for questions 45)
49) What energy-efficiency technologies have you installed in existing buildings (e.g., HVAC systems, motion sensors, ambient light sensors, T5 lighting, LED lighting, timers, laundry technology)?
For each technology, please indicate the number and type of fixtures installed, and the number of buildings in which those fixtures are installed. If possible, include either the percentage of the overall campus fixtures each type represents or the percentage of overall maintained building space that has been renovated with the technology (e.g., 20 buildings representing 10 percent of maintained building space have been retrofitted with motion sensors; thus, 10 percent of the total maintained building space in square feet would be the desired data).
HVAC system: 50% of campus uses efficient HVAC methods such as VAV boxes or set back controls. Note that of 180 buildings on campus, 83% of the buildings were built prior to 1980, making retrofits of HVAC a slow process!
Motion sensors: Less than 5% of campus uses lighting controls based on motion sensors
Ambient Light sensors: Less than 1%
First applications of T5 and LED lighting include building exit lights:
Building exit lights are estimated to be 50% LED. T5s are used in numerous buildings on campus, including the Division of Facilities and Real Estate Offices.
50) What water-conservation technologies have you installed in existing buildings (e.g., low-flow faucets, low-flow showerheads, waterless urinals, dual-flush toilets, gray water systems, laundry technology)?
For each technology, please indicate the number and type of fixtures installed, and the number of buildings in which those fixtures are installed. If possible, include either the percentage of the overall campus fixtures each type represents or the percentage of overall maintained building space that has been renovated with the technology (e.g., 20 buildings representing 10 percent of the maintained building space have been retrofitted with low-flow faucets; thus, 10 percent of the total maintained building space in square feet would be the desired data).
Low flow showerheads are being installed in all residential rooms. There are at least 1,500 fixtures being changed out over the course of the summer of 2009. Three residential high-rise towers and on additional residential hall have low flow toilets (total square footage of 55,600 sf). Facilities and Real Estate Services has been aggressively converting city water cooled equipment to other means (processed water or air cooled). The Music Building addition (27,700 square feet), to be completed in 2010, will have dual flush toilets.
51) What percentage of your institution's non-hazardous construction and demolition waste is diverted from landfills?
75%. The construction industry in Philadelphia and environs have become increasingly sophisticated in terms of recycling. For larger demolition projects, Penn has sought the services of a specialty firm that recycles and salvages high-value components from buildings, Construction Waste Management. Penn routinely salvages paving materials and stone building materials for reuse in campus gardens and plazas.
STUDENT INVOLVEMENT
RESIDENTIAL COMMUNITIES
52) Are there any sustainability-themed residential communities or housing options at your school?
[ ] No
[X] Yes. Please provide details below.
Name of program: Biosphere
Type of community (e.g., hall, building, house): Kings Court/English House (KCEH): 1st floor of Kings Court
Number of students involved: 50
Additional details:
Biosphere Program is all about how people interact with the world around them. Residents have many opportunities, ranging from outdoor recreation to exploring sustainability topics on Penn’s campus and throughout the city of Philadelphia. Residents establish social and academic activities, such as museum trips, cook-outs, canoeing and camping outings, Earth Day fundraisers, and a host of faculty discussions, as well as outdoor vegetable gardening in the KCEH courtyard.
Also, sustainability is encouraged throughout all of the college houses through ‘Go Green!’, Penn’s environmental sustainability initiative in residences. Its mission is to increase awareness of waste reduction, energy conservation, and best practices for living a sustainable lifestyle at Penn. (http://www.collegehouses.upenn.edu/green/)
NEW STUDENT ORIENTATION
53) Does a portion of your new student orientation specifically cover sustainability?
[ ] No
[ X] Yes. Please describe how sustainability is incorporated (e.g., information sessions, green tour):
PennGreen is an environmentally focused Pre-orientation program offered to 40 incoming freshmen, sponsored by the Office of the Provost, the Undergraduate Assembly, Facilities and Real Estate Services, the Trustees’ Council of Penn Women, and the Earth and Environmental Science Department.
PennGreen provides students with an environmental introduction to Penn and Philadelphia, and offers them a chance to form relationships with peers interested in environmental activism. During the program, participants will meet faculty, learn about campus recycling and LEED building projects, work at a local urban farm, partake in and learn about how the community participates in the sustainable food and living movement, embark on an educational river tour, and more. In addition, students will have a great time getting to know Penn, Philadelphia, and like-minded students before New Student Orientation begins. PennGreen is led by upper-class students who are members of the Penn Environmental Group or have contributed in some way to the green movement at Penn.
The Residential Advisors and Graduate Associates of the College Houses receive sustainability training that includes an overview of campus sustainability efforts, methods for recycling, and personalized information sessions at the R.A. / G.A. resource fair. By equipping these residential housing leaders with sustainability training, they are able to disseminate resources and information to the students that live in their halls.
During New Student Orientation for all incoming freshmen, students watch an award-winning short video produced by Penn’s Green Campus Partnership, D.A.R.E. to be Green, filmed in 2008. http://video.google.com/videosearch?sourceid=navclient&rlz=1T4DMUS_enUS311US222&q=Penn%20PennGReen&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wv# A new video will be added to the educational campaign in 2009.
INTERNSHIPS/OUTREACH OPPORTUNITIES
54) Does your school offer on-campus office-based sustainability internships or jobs for students?
[ ] No
[X] Yes. Please provide number of students and average number of hours worked weekly per student:
[6] Paid positions. For the past two years, a team of six sustainability interns has worked full time during the summer. The interns are undergraduates, recent graduates, and graduate students. Over the academic year, two recent graduates were offered full-time positions in the Green Campus Partnership, and one student continued to work an average of 15 hours a week while completing a master’s degree.
55) Does your school have residence hall Eco-Reps or other similar programs to promote behavioral change on campus?
[ ] No
[ x] Yes. Please provide details below, and indicate URL if available: There is no URL available at this time. In the 2009-2010 academic year, Penn is piloting an Eco-Reps program, with an anticipated 48 students working on sustainability issues an average of four hours a week in three (of twelve) college residence houses. These students will be paid a stipend of $250 a semester, and receive specific training once a month on eight different topics over the year: sustainable lifestyle choices, energy conservation, heating and cooling in college houses, water conservation, waste & recycling, dining choices, transportation, and purchasing/consumption. In 2011, the program is expected to expand to all twelve college houses. The students will be supported by the house deans in teaching their fellow college house residents about these topics through education delivered through study breaks, pizza parties, Quizzo, competitions, and scavenger hunts (and whatever else they dream up).
[~30] Unpaid positions. In addition to the paid Eco-Reps, the Green Campus Partnership will invite all incoming freshmen who participated in the PennGREEN pre-orientation program to attend the Eco-Rep training programs. Although they will not be suppored by sponsored College House programming, these students will serve as informal ambassadors from the Green Campus Partnership.
STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS
56) Does your school have active student-run organizations devoted to sustainability efforts on campus?
[ ] No
[X] Yes. Please provide total number of active organizations, names of organizations, a brief description of each, and URLs, if available:
Penn Environmental Group: http://www.dolphin.upenn.edu/pennenv/exec.html
The University of Pennsylvania Environmental Group is a student run group aiming to increase campus awareness of global environmental issues across the Penn community and throughout the world. The Group seeks to incorporate ideals from a diverse community, and expose the campus, community and the world at large to an expanded knowledge of environmental issues.
Urban Nutrition Initiative: http://www.urbannutrition.org/
The Agatston Urban Nutrition Initiative (AUNI) is a university-community partnership based at the University of Pennsylvania that engages K-16+ learners in an active, real-world problem-solving curriculum that strives to improve community nutrition and wellness. UNI programs fall into three general categories: increasing food and nutrition knowledge, increasing the supply of healthy foods, and encouraging and supporting active lifestyles.
Penn EPED (Environmental Planning and Ecological Design): http://www.facebook.com/s.php?ref=search&sid=7a41b702fdc0fad460fa78f598297afa&init=q&q=EPED#/group.php?gid=67033013466
EPED is a student-run group of graduate students in the areas of architecture, landscape architecture, city planning, and historic preservation. Its mission is the ongoing engagement of the campus student body, faculty, and maintenance staff on the topic of sustainability in design. Issues and events includes design competitions for improving waste and recycling, film screenings, community engagement activities (tree planting, urban farms visits), discussions with local experts, and panels with PennDesign professors regarding their professional experience and advice for students interested in enrolling in the School’s various sustainability-focused programs.
FarmEcology: http://www.upenn.edu/ccp/FarmEcology/
Founded as an outgrowth of an Academically Based Community Service (ABCS) class, FarmEcology is a student-initiated endeavor that is raising awareness and educating Penn's campus about the benefits of local foods. Initial partnership with PennDining resulted in a program to bring local, fresh food into Penn’s Dining facilities on a regular basis, and also in the on-campus Lancaster County farmer’s market on campus once-a week. Penn Dining Dollars are accepted as payment at the farmer’s market.
Undergraduate Assembly, Committee on Sustainability, Safety, and Facilities: http://pennua.org/?cat=11
The Undergraduate Assembly, Penn's elected legislative branch of student government has a standing committee on Safety, Sustainability, and Facilities, which has had a peripheral role in campus discussions surrounding sustainability. That committee is headed by a Director who is the UA's point person for sustainability. The committee Director sits on the UA's Cabinet and is a specialist in the committee's area of policy, working closely with administrators related to their portfolio.
SUSTAINABILITY CHALLENGES AND COMPETITIONS
57) Does your school organize any sustainability challenges/competitions for your campus and/or with other colleges?
[ ] No
[X] Yes. Please list details for all competitions.
Name of competition: RecycleMania
Year initiated: Spring 2007
Frequency of competition: Annual
Participants: Campus-wide
Incentives: Giveaways, Free Coffees, Reusable Bottles, Reusable Bags, Gift Certificates, Camcorder, Pride
Goal of competition: To raise awareness, increase the amount of material that is recycled, and to increase the reduction of waste.
Percent of energy/water/waste reduced: The percentage of cumulative waste recycled increased to 21.2%
Lasting effects of competition: The competition has raised awareness about the process of recycling and how to recycle on campus. Schools and centers have implemented recycling programs.
Website: http://www.upenn.edu/recyclemania/index.php
TRANSPORTATION
CAMPUS MOTOR FLEET
58) How many vehicles are in your institution's fleet? Based on 2009 registration information, the University’s fleet is composed of 378 vehicles across forty-three schools, centers, divisions, and related organizations.
59) Please list the number of alternative-fuel vehicles in each class.
The University of Pennsylvania owns or leases various types of vehicles, including cars, vans, shuttles, buses, trucks, tractors, and small motorized carts. There is no centralized entity that oversees the purchase and maintenance of Penn-owned vehicles, making a comprehensive listing difficult.
As of the time of this survey, we can account for:
- Thirteen electric golf carts
- Five electric police motorcycles, four purchased since last year’s SEI submission
- Several hybrid cars and trucks, including three sedans, and one crossover SUV
- Many hybrid vehicle choices are available to students, faculty, and staff through PhillyCarShare (please see “Car-Sharing Program” section below)
Alternative fuel options are not readily available for utility vehicles such as tractors, forklifts, trailers, and gators, but are under investigation by the University (please see narrative below).
[4] Hybrid. Please list makes and models:
- 2006 Hybrid Toyota Prius (School of Engineering and Applied Science)
- Two 2009 Hybrid Toyota Camry Sedans (Public Safety)
- 2009 Hybrid Ford Escape (Public Safety)
[14] Electric. Please describe type of vehicles: Golf Carts and 2009 Vectrix electric motorcycles
[0] Biodiesel. Please describe type of vehicles and list biodiesel blend(s) used:
In investigative stages; please see narrative below.
[1] Other. Please describe: ‘California Clean Idle’ Waste Hauling Truck
60) What is the average GHG emission rate per passenger mile of your institution's motorized fleet?
[#] pounds of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) per passenger mile traveled.
The vehicles in the University’s fleet range in age over 20 years, in size between a golf cart and a transit bus, and in annual driving distance between 200 and 18,500 miles, making “average GHG emission rate” a difficult, and incomplete, measure of the fleet’s carbon impact.
As part of Penn’s 2009 Climate Action Plan, a recommendation was made to replace vehicles in PennTransit and Facilities fleets, as they are retired, with hybrid or alternative fuel vehicles. The University is currently researching available vehicles and prices, and anticipates purchasing six hybrid or electric-powered vehicles in the coming year, with the intent of renewing this commitment in subsequent years. Penn Parking is adding three hybrid vehicles, and Penn Police is pursuing two for its fleet. Bon Appetit, Penn’s new food services provider, is purchasing a hybrid or electric vehicle for its operations.
While vehicle counts make it seem that the University has not aggressively greened its fleet, it is not for lack of effort. In the early 1990s, Penn purchased several compressed natural gas vehicles, which could be fueled at a local Sunoco refinery less than a mile from Penn’s campus. Since 2001 however, that refinery has been closed to all outside traffic for security reasons, and there is no viable source of CNG in proximity to Penn.
In 2006, Penn negotiated with a local Sunoco filling station to carry bio-diesel, but was unable to guarantee sufficient volume of fuel purchase to convince the owner to implement this change.
In 2009, the University supported a feasibility study for a hydrogen storage system for vehicular fueling, but was unable to commit the necessary funds to proceed into implementation.
New LEED certified buildings incorporate accommodations for alternative fuel vehicles, like charging stations for electric cars (21 in the newly completed Perelman Center for Advanced Medicine underground parking garage). Many Penn parking lots provide reserved parking spaces for PhillyCarShare vehicles, including a number of hybrid vehicles.
As a result of compiling this SEI survey, the University intends to convene a task force composed of Purchasing, Transportation, Public Safety, Facilities, and Sustainability staff to discuss a more streamlined approach toward integrating hybrid and alternative fuel vehicles into the University’s decision-making process.
LOCAL TRANSPORTATION ALTERNATIVES
61) Does your school offer incentives for carpooling?
[ ] N/A. Please explain:
[ ] No
[X] Yes. Please describe details of the program including the type of the incentive and eligible community members (e.g., faculty, staff, and students):
There are a number of car pooling and car sharing options available in the region.
Penn faculty and staff have the option of hassle-free commuting at a rate substantially less than driving a car each day. Penn Transit coordinates a van pool program which offers the faculty and staff of Penn, HUP, CHOP, Drexel and the nearby Science Center (a state-financed office and lab development) a cost effective and convenient alternative to driving. The van pools travel to campus from areas in and around Philadelphia, at an individual cost ranging from approximately $60 to $100 per month, depending on the area served.
Penn has partnered with a service called AlterNetRides to assist faculty, staff and students who are interested in joining a car pool. The system allows users to connect with other interested members of the Penn community. The Clean Air Council's Philadelphia Mobility Alternatives Program offers a number of programs for people who want to share transportation. These include:
§ Share-A-Ride: The Share-A-Ride program is an easy and convenient way for employees to commute to work everyday. Share-A-Ride matches employees that live near or around the same area, creating an easy commute alternative to the Single Occupancy Vehicle. If one of the matched employees cannot join the other for the ride home as well, this program even offers emergency rides home!
§ Emergency Ride Home is a program created for commuters who share their ride to work on a regular basis, in the event that a registered commuters' ride home is not available. In the event of unscheduled overtime, a personal emergency or illness, or if the ride home is not available for certain reasons, commuters are offered a free ride to their car or place of emergency. This offer is only available to employees who are registered with the Share-A-Ride program, or employees that are registered with an employer who participates in MAP.
§ Penn Transportation and Parking is also piloting with ZimRide, a national car-sharing program, to promote ridesharing to campus.
62) Does your school offer public transportation subsidies?
[ ] N/A. Please explain:
[ ] No
[X] Yes. Please describe the program including the size of the discount (as a percent of full price) and eligible community members (e.g., faculty, staff, and students):
The University negotiated an agreement with the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) enabling regular full- and part-time faculty and staff to purchase TransPasses and TrailPasses at 10% pre-tax discount through payroll deduction. The forthcoming Climate Action Plan (to be finalized September 15, 2009) includes budgeted and planned increases over the next five years.
A TransPass enables travel and transfer with no limit on buses, trolleys and subways within the City of Philadelphia. A TrailPass offers unlimited travel up to the zone shown on the face of the pass on suburban bus routes, Regional Rail trains and all transit routes within the City. Permanent full- and part-time employees of the University of Pennsylvania are eligible to purchase TransitCheks. Up to $115 worth of TransitCheks may be purchased through payroll deduction on a pre-tax basis. The following regional transit providers participate in the TransitChek program: SEPTA, Dart, NJ Transit, Amtrak, and PATCO.
63) Does your school provide free transportation around campus?
[ ] N/A. Please explain:
[ ] No
[X] Yes. Please describe:
LUCY (Loop Through University City) is a SEPTA transit route funded by the University of Pennsylvania. The route loops through University City serving 30th Street Station, University of Pennsylvania, Drexel University, University City Science Center, University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, Presbyterian Medical Center, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Children's Seashore House, and the Veterans Administration Medical Center. Employees and students of University of Pennsylvania, University of Pennsylvania Health System, and VA Medical Center need only valid institutional ID.
64) Does your school operate a free transportation shuttle to local off-campus destinations?
[ ] N/A. Please explain:
[ ] No
[X] Yes. Please describe:
Penn Bus East and Penn Bus West are evening bus services that operate on fixed schedules along established routes, roughly one and a half miles east and west of campus, providing safe, convenient transport home at the end of the day to the entire Penn community. Penn Bus will pick up and drop off passengers at any intersection with a stop sign or traffic signal along its route.
Penn Bus East runs to Center City between 5:15pm and 12:30am, every day of the week. Penn Bus West runs to West Philadelphia between 4:45pm and 12:00am. Penn Shuttle provides "to door" transportation off-campus within Penn Transit's service area every day of the week between 6pm and 7am. There are 4 different Penn Shuttle routes: East, West, North, and Xtra. All Penn Buses and Shuttles are equipped with bike racks to increase intermodality.
Penn Accessible Transit provides transportation within Penn Transit's service area for persons with disabilities. Penn Transit operates three fully accessible "Handivan" vehicles. These vehicles provide dedicated service from 7am to 6pm Monday through Friday on appointment or on-call.
To assist students in accessing PennTransit, in 2008, a web-enabled GPS system was installed on all busses, allowing riders to check accurate, up-to-the-minute arrival times at all stops (http://pennrides.com/ ). This service is also available on cell phones and PDAs. All bus stops are equipped with closed circuit security cameras, manned 24 hours a day by Penn’s Division of Public Safety.
In order to improve pedestrian service across campus, a new wheelchair-accessible pedestrian bridge was constructed by Penn this year across the local Amtrak right of way. This has eliminated the need for a PennTransit shuttle bus to serve that portion of sports fields and athletic facilities on the other side of the tracks. See: http://www.pennconnects.upenn.edu/find_a_project/by_category/landscape/weave_bridge_overview.php
Penn Home Ownership Services offers an Enhanced Forgivable Loan (EFL) program as an incentive for faculty and staff interested in living and/or currently residing in the West Philadelphia community. This has the multiple impacts of encouraging employee home purchasing near campus, promoting biking and walking to work, reducing commuting time, fuel, and expense, and increasing participation in Penn-run alternative transportation. http://www.business-services.upenn.edu/homeownership/enhancedforgivableloan.html
BICYCLE PROGRAM
65) Does your school offer a bicycle-sharing/rental program or bicycle repair services?
[ ] No
[X] Yes. Please provide details below.
Year created: 2008 (one-day pilot program)
Number of bikes available: 18
Fees for participation: Free
Repair services provided: Penn coordinates with local bike shops in the area and neighborhood bike works on campus. Staff are working energetically to support a city-wide bike-sharing program with potential implementation in 2011
The City of Philadelphia is cooperating with Penn in planning a city-wide bike sharing program, based on the successful model in Montreal. The intent is to deploy a complete 5000+ bicycle sharing program as an extension of the regional transit program. Penn is intentionally not pursuing a campus-only bike sharing program, as it would undermine and divert energy and resources from the City’s program. For more information on Philadelphia’s Bike Share program and Penn’s involvement, see http://www.bikesharephiladelphia.org/
To promote commuting to campus by bicycle, Penn facilities is constructing the first of twelve bike corrals, located at the perimeter of campus, with security lighting and closed circuit security cameras, manned 24 hours a day by Penn’s Division of Public Safety. The initial corral will be completed by September, 2009, adjacent to Penn’s main library.
There is one for-profit and one not-for-profit bike repair shop on campus: Neighborhood Bike Works is Philadelphia’s only bicycle co-op, which provides inexpensive bikes, classes, and expert repair advice in an easily accessible location in the heart of campus. http://www.neighborhoodbikeworks.org/blog/about/
CAR-SHARING PROGRAM
66) Does your school partner with a car-sharing program?
[ ] No
[X] Yes. Please provide details below.
Year created: 2007
Total number of vehicles: 55 near campus, 500 throughout the Philadelphia region
Number of hybrid vehicles: 50% of fleet
Fee for membership:
In 2008, Penn entered into a ground-breaking agreement with PhillyCarShare, a 50,000-member Philadelphia-based carshare nonprofit founded by four Penn graduates. This agreement represents the largest university car-sharing program in the country, with dozens of vehicles convenient to campus. Penn staff receives discount rental rates and PhillyCarShare will contribute 1% of revenues from Penn users into a Penn Sustainability Fund. Students pay the regular $15/month membership fee.
PLANNING
67) Does your school have policies that support a pedestrian-friendly or bike-friendly campus (e.g., in the school's master plan, a policy prohibiting vehicles from the center of campus)?
[ ] N/A. Please explain:
[ ] No
[X] Yes. Please describe: These concepts are incorporated into the PennConnects campus master plan, including 14-acre pedestrian/bike-only campus expansion. The design for Penn Park incorporates full accessibility for bicycles with bike parking and a 2008 circulation study completed by Orth-Rodgers transportation consultants highlights non-motorized planning. The core of Penn’s campus is an entirely pedestrian zone.
Several projects will be executed in the next several years to enhance the campus pedestrian experience. Two mid-block crosswalks, at 33rd Street and 34th Street will be improved to include new signage, traffic signals, and traffic calming measures to reduce speeds at pedestrian crosswalks. In 2010, the budget for the first crosswalk improvements is $200,000.
68) What percentage of individuals commute to campus via environmentally preferable transportation (e.g., walking, bicycling, carpooling, using public transit)?
[ 40%] (estimated from data collected from parking passes sold, commuter TransPass, TrailPass, and TransitCheks sold.
PennTransit’s annual Commuter Fair provides members of the Penn community an opportunity to find alternatives to driving to campus and ways to make their commutes more affordable and sustainable. Representatives from regional transit orgnizations SEPTA, New Jersey Transit, PATCO, Amtrak, and PhillyCarShare, as well as non-profits like the Clean Air Council and the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia, team with Penn representatives from Human Resources, Transportation, Parking, and the Division of Public Safety to provide information about public transportation, biking and bike safety, car and van pooling, and car sharing options on Penn’s campus. http://www.upenn.edu/almanac/volumes/v55/n06/commute.html
STATISTICS
69) Campus setting:
[ ] Rural
[ ] Suburban
[X] Urban
[ ] Other. Please describe:
70) Total number of buildings: [182 ]
71) Combined gross square footage of all buildings: [11,912,086]
72) Full-time enrollment (undergraduate and graduate): [20,128]
73) Part-time enrollment (undergraduate and graduate): [3,979]
74) Part-time enrollment as a proportion to a full-time course load: [.1977]
75) Percent of full-time students that live on campus: [27%]
Questions 76-87 are for informational purposes only; responses will NOT be included in the Report Card evaluation process.
OTHER AREAS OF ENVIRONMENTAL ENGAGEMENT
Please mark an "X" next to each item that applies to your institution.
76) Outdoors club: [Yes]
77) Disposable water bottle ban: [No]. Penn Purchasing has a preferred vendor agreement with Quench water filters which are being phased in across campus to replace bottled water in administrative and faculty offices and at student cafeterias. At the Division of Facilities and Real Estate Services, the Quench machine has saved over $12,000 by eliminating bottled water purchases (taking into account the new drinking glasses distributed to administrative staff, and the to-go non-PBA water bottles distributed to operations and custodial staff. The Green Campus Partnership took the opportunity to place an explanation of the environmental benefits of the program inside every glass and bottle distributed.
78) Participation in Recyclemania: [Yes]
79) Student trustee position: [Yes]
80) Environmental science/studies major: [Yes]]
81) Environmental science/studies minor or concentration: [Yes]
82) Graduate-level environmental program: [Yes, Masters in Environmental Studies, PhDs in several earth science branches, and professional degrees in several schools.]
83) Student green fee: [No ]
84) Alumni green fund: [No ]
85) Revolving loan fund for sustainability projects: [Yes – while technically not a 100% revolving loan fund, Penn’s Green fund will launch this year with an endowment of $1M. Projects will be capped at $50,000 each, and may be used for any initiative that has an environmental benefit on campus. Projects will be selected by an eight person committee including faculty and staff, and initiatives such as education and awareness-building that do not have a defined return on investment will not be required to repay the loan fund. Capital or operational projects that have a determined repayment will repay the GreenFund first, and subsequent savings will return to the project sponsor.]
86) Campus garden or farm: [Yes]
87) Single-stream recycling: [ ]. In Penn’s urban setting, it is more economical to have dual stream: plastics/glass/metals and paper/cardboard to be able to respond to market conditions for different materials. Significant investment has been made in dual stream infrastructure and education.
<< Back to Report Card