Energy

Environmental Indicators

Electricity and natural gas are forms of energy that heat and power our buildings, homes, and offices. For dashboard purposes, both are combined into one target area. Energy emissions make up about 65% of Fort Collins’ greenhouse gas emissions. Electrification of appliances, vehicles, and heating systems is an emerging trend that will support Fort Collins’ Our Climate Future goals as electricity sources become more renewable. While electricity is becoming more renewable and more parts of our daily needs are electrified, Fort Collins may see a brief increase in electricity emissions and decreases in natural gas and vehicle fuel emissions.

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Energy Emissions

Energy Measures

The following measures are categorized as direct or indirect. Direct measures track data used to calculate carbon emissions. Indirect measures show community trends that may impact carbon emissions but are not directly tied to carbon calculations. Some measures are not evaluated against a target and are simply informational. This is indicated when the status bar is gray instead of green, yellow, or red.

Measures

Actual

Target

Results

Direct Measures

Community Electricity Use by Resource (kWh/year)

Community electricity use by resource type indicates the amount of electricity used by the community and how it was generated. Fort Collins electricity comes from renewables (hydropower, solar and wind), purchases from other generators, and fossil sources (coal and natural gas). Data is provided by Fort Collins Utilities and the Platte River Power Authority.


1,522,780	N/A	2023

Indirect Measures

Percent Renewable Electricity Generation

This metric indicates the amount of electricity generated from renewable electricity resources (wind, solar, and hydropower). The values shown here represent the percentage of renewable generation each year since 2005. The City’s Energy Policy has a goal of 100% renewable electricity by 2030. For this metric, good performance is indicated by an increasing amount of renewable electricity generation. Data is provided by Fort Collins Utilities and the Platte River Power Authority.


48.80%	40.00%	2023

Percent Fossil Electricity Generation

This metric indicates the amount of electricity generated from fossil electricity resources (coal, natural gas, and grid-purchases). The values shown here represent the percentage of fossil generation each year since 2005. City Energy Policy seeks to reduce the percentage of coal-derived electricity to less than 60% by 2020. For this metric, good performance is indicated by a decreasing amount of fossil electricity generation. Data is provided by Fort Collins Utilities and the Platte River Power Authority.


51.20%	60.00%	2023

Community Natural Gas Use per Capita (decatherms/year)

This metric tracks natural gas use per capita. This metric is evaluated annually and is calculated by dividing the yearly community natural gas use by that year’s population. By tracking natural gas at a per capita level, changes in behavior, efficiency, and other influencing factors are more visible than at the community level where population can mask these trends. Performance improves as natural gas use per capita declines. Data is provided by Fort Collins Utilities.


	50	2023

Community Electricity Use Per Capita (kWh/quarter)

This metric tracks electricity use (kWh) per capita. It is calculated by dividing the yearly community electricity use by that year’s population. By tracking electricity use at a per capita level, changes in behavior, efficiency, and other influencing factors are more visible than at the community level where population can mask these trends. Performance improves as electricity use per capita declines. Data is provided by Fort Collins Utilities.


1,981	2,283	Q4 2023

Energy Performance of Municipal Buildings (KBTU/square foot)

Energy Performance of Municipal Buildings measures the energy (natural gas and electricity, converted to a common unit) use of municipal buildings per square foot. This metric is calculated by dividing the municipality’s annual energy use by the total building square footage of its building stock. The lower the number, the better the energy performance of our municipal buildings. The advantage of tracking building energy use per square foot is that it shows changes in efficiency, behavior change of building occupants, and other influencing factors. The data for this metric comes from the City’s Operations Services Department.


117.40	127.94	2023

Energy Performance of Community Buildings (KBTU/square foot)

Energy Performance of Community Buildings measures the energy (natural gas and electricity, converted to a common unit) use of community buildings per square foot. This metric is calculated by dividing the community’s annual energy use by the total building square footage. The lower the number, the better the energy performance of buildings. The advantage of tracking building energy use per square foot is that it shows changes in efficiency, behavior change of building occupants, and other influencing factors. The data for this metric comes from Fort Collins Utilities.


72	N/A	2023

Energy Links

Click here to go to Fort Collins Utilities residential page.

Click here for the Fort Collins Utilities business page.