INSTITUTIONAL WATER USE: STRATEGIES & SUCCESS · 4. Increase the efficiency of new building cooling by 10 percent –success through standards and energy efficiency efforts. 5. Use

INSTITUTIONAL WATER USE: STRATEGIES & SUCCESS

Cory Higgins, Ph.D., P.E.

Executive Director, Facilities Management Operations

University of Utah

Agenda

• Context

• Consumption

• Strategy

• Outcomes

• Next Steps

2


TH E UN IVERSITY O F UTAH®

Utah’s 10th Largest City

• ~700 acres

• 16.5 M square feet

• Manage all utilities after the “main” connections

• Water

• Electricity – Three substations

• District Energy

3



CONTEXT: UofU KEY ATTRIBUTES

CONTEXT: GROWTH & COMMITMENTS

University (16.5M sq ft) committed to carbon neutrality by 2050

Salt Lake County air quality classified serious nonattainment

Conservation & Growth Management - 2.5% building floor area growth per year

4



815,095 125,937

363,444

Domestic Water (CCF) Cooling Water (CCF) Irrigation (CCF)


CONSUMPTION: CURRENT WATER USETH E UN IVERSITY O F UTAH

®

CONSUMPTION: DOMESTIC WATER USE



• Establish aggressive 10 yr. goals in 2010

• Water neutral

• Historic onsite precipitation

• 516 MG

• Current total water consumption

• 969 MG (2011)

• ≈950 MG (2017)

• Balance

• 429 MG

• Study and develop plan - 6 Tactics pursued.

2011 Report, Figure 4



STRATEGY: ASSESS/PURSUE WATER NEUTRAL

1. New buildings

a) Require all new buildings use 30 percent less water – partial success through DFCM & LEED standards

b) Dual plumb all new buildings – pilot projects (NHMU & S. J. Quinney College of Law) –further study needed

2. Existing buildings

a) Replace existing toilets with 1.28 gpf – partial success

b) Replace fixtures with low use – partial success with showers, lavatories

3. Convert one percent of existing turf to xeriscape per year – success, ongoing

a) New building conversions

b) One acre+ per year in stand alone projects.



STRATEGY: PRIMARY TACTICS & FEEDBACK

4. Increase the efficiency of new building cooling by 10 percent – success through standards and energy efficiency efforts.

5. Use non potable water for irrigation – success

a) Use well water for irrigation – well irrigation started in 2014, planned growth for the program

b) Capture rainwater – pilot projects (NHMU)

c) Use well water for process water – planned

6. Increase infiltration of precipitation to balance water usage and reduce storm water runoff – partial success

a) New standards for storm water management (Retain 10yr)

b) HPER mall redesign



STRATEGY: PRIMARY TACTICS & FEEDBACK

2010 – INITIAL PROJECTIONS

0

200

400

600

800

1000

1200

1400

1600

Mil

lio

n o

f G

all

on

s p

er

Ye

ar

Comparison of Historic and Current Water Use

Historic RainfallWater Cycle

Current Total WaterCycle

CURRENT PROGRESS


900,000,000

950,000,000

1,000,000,000

1,050,000,000

1,100,000,000

1,150,000,000

1,200,000,000

1,250,000,000

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019

Gal

lon

s (U

S)

Year (FY)

Annual Water Use

Potable Projected Projected w/ Interventions

TH E UN IVERSITY O F UTAH®STRATEGY: UofU SUSTAINABILITY INITIATIVE

2010 TO 2020


TH E UN IVERSITY O F UTAH®OUTCOMES: DOMESTIC WATER

CONSUMPTION

INSTITUTIONAL WATER USE: STRATEGIES & SUCCESS 12

-

0.010

0.020

0.030

0.040

0.050

0.060

0.070

0.080

0.090

0.100

2010 2015 2020 2025 2030 2035

Wa

ter

Use

Inte

nsi

ty (C

CF/

sq ft

)

UofU Water Use Intensity Projections

Estimated Water Use Intensity (CCF/sq ft) Water Use Intensity (CCF/sq ft)

UofU FM S&E Water Performance, 2018-07

TH E UN IVERSITY O F UTAH®OUTCOMES: WATER USE INTENSITY

• Installation and integration of building level water meters

• Building real-time dashboards

• Water Use Intensity by building

• Generate a specific and measured understanding of water use intensity

• Prioritize opportunities

• Water efficiency standards for all projects

• Improved leak detection

• Address industrial processes

• Research processes

• Building Cooling



OUTCOMES: ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT

Vutiliti Dashboard at Law Building

REAL-TIME DASHBOARDS

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• Water rights

• Surface & Ground

• Budget

• Relative expense

• Projected rate increases

• Regulations and costs to reuse indoor water (grey) for other processes or toilet flushing

• Regulations and costs for treatment to reclaim water for irrigation or other uses



NEXT STEPS: POTENTIAL CONSTRAINTS

Cory Higgins

Email: [email protected]

Website: facilities.utah.edu

Tel: (801) 581-7221

CONTACT INFO

Address:

V Randall Turpin Bldg

1795 E South Campus Dr

Salt Lake City, UT 84112

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17

Energy Star Portfolio Manager Dashboard, University of Utah, 2018-07

INSTITUTIONAL WATER USE: STRATEGIES & SUCCESS 18

16.2% EUI

reduction. On track

for BBC goal

TH E UN IVERSITY O F UTAH®OUTCOMES: PART OF A BIGGER PICTURE

BIG INCREASES TO WATER/SEWER BY SLC

$-

$1,000,000

$2,000,000

$3,000,000

$4,000,000

$5,000,000

$6,000,000

2010 2015 2020 2025 2030 2035

Wa

ter/

Sew

er C

ost

UofU Total Water Cost Projections

Estimated Water/Sewer Cost Water/Sewer Cost

SLC water/sewer rate increases have been big.

Expect more annually for coming years

19



PROJECTED: SLOW REDUCTIONS TO WATER CONSUMPTION

-

200,000

400,000

600,000

800,000

1,000,000

1,200,000

1,400,000

2010 2015 2020 2025 2030 2035

Wa

ter

Co

nsu

mp

tio

n (

CC

F)UofU Total Water Consumption Projections

Estimated Consumption (CCF) Water Consumption (CCF)

20



FY19 CHANGES TO AUXILIARY BILLING RATES (AS % OF TOTAL COST)

-3.8%

-2.0%

0.4%

0.9%

1.6% 1.5%

0.2%

-5.1%

-6.0%

-5.0%

-4.0%

-3.0%

-2.0%

-1.0%

0.0%

1.0%

2.0%

FY18

ELEC CHW HTW GAS WATER SEWER STORM/STREET DEBT AMORTIZATION

Shared

savings of

cogen and

RMP

contract

changes

Full cost of

O&M and

R&R,

continued

SLC rate

increases

Standalone,

reduced debt

collection

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INSTITUTIONAL WATER USE: STRATEGIES & SUCCESS · 4. Increase the efficiency of new building cooling by 10 percent –success through standards and energy efficiency efforts. 5. Use