Profile

Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) is Canada’s leader in innovative, career-oriented education. Urban, culturally diverse and inclusive, TMU is home to more than 45,300 students, including 2,600 Master’s and PhD students, 3,800 faculty and staff, and nearly 198,000 alumni worldwide.

As part of its commitment to delivering an exceptional educational experience, TMU is developing sustainable operating practices and capital investment strategies. This commitment is rooted in the shared responsibility to build and operate a campus that reduces the collective impact on the environment while contributing to the overall well-being of its students, staff, faculty, and alumni. TMU continuously seeks new and innovative ways to demonstrate sustainability leadership in its academic research, teaching, learning, engagement and operations. As a university, TMU appreciates the importance of sharing its learnings with the community and other institutions that are looking to do the same.

Accomplishments at the Building Portfolio

  • Number of buildings enrolled: 37 of 37
  • GHG Emissions Intensity: 4.02 kgCO₂e/sq ft²/yr
  • Total GHG Emissions: 13,187 tCO₂e/yr

Campus-wide Sub-metering Program

The Campus-wide Sub-metering Program involves sub-metering all utilities at each building to enable more accurate real-time analysis of energy end-uses across the campus.This program serves as a backbone for future energy efficiency measures and allows the energy team to prioritize initiatives, quantify savings, drive a real-time energy monitoring dashboard and support the use the campus as a living lab to be used in faculty research related to building energy and emissions profiles.

Release of Sustainable Building Guidelines to Create a Healthier, Sustainable, and Low-Carbon Campus

TMU’s Sustainable Building Guidelines, released in September 2021, sets aspirational energy and emissions performance targets for new construction and renovation projects to ensure that ongoing and future campus construction aligns with TMU’s vision of a low carbon future.

Partnership with Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) to Share Learnings

In partnership with NRCan, TMU will retro-commission the Sheldon and Tracy Levy Student Learning Centre building and undertake an enhanced retro-commissioning project to ensure that the newly installed Kerr Hall chiller plants operate in conjunction with the existing Library chiller plant. A primary objective of this partnership is to generate a case study to support other building owners in replicating similar successes in retro-commissioning across Canada.

Retro-commissioning Initiatives at Victoria Building, George Vari Engineering and Computing Centre, and Mattamy Athletic Centre resulting in annual reduction of 152 tonnes of CO2

Retro-commissioning three buildings on campus resulted in improved energy efficiency, cost savings, and a reduction in GHG emissions associated with building operations. Annual savings for all three buildings amounted to:

  • 152 tonnes of CO2
  • 46,000 m3 of natural gas
  • 1,441,571 lbs of steam
  • 651,750 kWh of electricity
  • $127,500 of utility cost savings

Steam Trap Upgrades for District Steam across Campus resulting in annual reduction of 55 tonnes of CO2

Optimal operation of steam traps is crucial for a site like Ryerson, which makes use of district steam for most of its heating requirements. Malfunctioning steam traps can result in significant amounts of wasted energy due to steam leaks and comfort issues for building occupants.

The results of the annual steam trap audit were used to identify the need for maintenance or replacement. Annual savings of these upgrades amounted to:

  • 55 tonnes of CO2
  • 822,394 lbs of steam
  • $21,000 of utility cost savings

Established Qualitative Conservation Goals

Qualitative goals foster a culture of sustainability across all aspects of the university’s operations. The Sustainability Certificate Program is offered to departments within the university that wish to adopt a more sustainable approach to conducting their operations. Attaining the certification requires an internal audit of the department’s practices, with energy conservation being a key component.

Disclaimer: Profiles presented are based on information provided by participants. Participants’ GHG emissions performance published are based on utility data submitted and converted to GHG emissions. The emission factors applied aligns with the period of energy data reported (2019). The emission factors utilized for the conversion are calculated based on a combination of sources: Government of Canada (National Inventory Report & Canada’s Proposed Greenhouse Gas Quantification Requirements), Government of Ontario (Guide: Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reporting), The Atmospheric Fund (A Clearer View on Ontario’s Emissions – Electricity emissions factors and guidelines) and Enbridge Gas Inc. (Chemical Composition of Natural Gas).