Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 45.97
Liaison Tom Hartzell
Submission Date Feb. 28, 2019
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

Calvin University
OP-21: Hazardous Waste Management

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.00 / 1.00 Henry Kingma
Groundskeeper
Physical Plant
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Part 1 

Does the institution have strategies in place to safely dispose of all hazardous, special (e.g. coal ash), universal, and non-regulated chemical waste and seek to minimize the presence of these materials on campus?:
Yes

A brief description of steps taken to reduce hazardous, special (e.g. coal ash), universal, and non-regulated chemical waste:
Contracts with hazardous, universal and medical waste haulers and recyclers.

A brief description of how the institution safely disposes of hazardous, universal, and non-regulated chemical waste:
Calvin uses only regulated and licensed waste transporters to dispose of our hazardous, universal and non-regulated chemical waste. Calvin EHS staff, in collaboration with Science Division staff and faculty, the Recycling Coordinator, the hazardous waste transporter and the Grand Rapids Water Treatment Department, work to identify the nature of each waste generated and determine if the waste should be transported off site for treatment and final disposal, recycled or permitted for disposal to the POTW.

A brief description of any significant hazardous material release incidents during the previous three years, including volume, impact and response/remediation:
Calvin has not had any significant hazardous material releases in the last three years.

A brief description of any inventory system employed by the institution to facilitate the reuse or redistribution of laboratory chemicals:
Calvin uses Vertere chemical tracking software. This software allows us to order the minimum amount of chemicals needed for classrooms and research by allowing the users to know the specific chemicals and associated quantities that are already available in stock across multiple departments. We do not generally have surplus chemicals for reuse but if we have a chemical that can be redistributed or “shared,” it will appear in the inventory system.

Part 2 

Does the institution have or participate in a program to responsibly recycle, reuse, and/or refurbish electronic waste generated by the institution?:
Yes

Does the institution have or participate in a program to responsibly recycle, reuse, and/or refurbish electronic waste generated by students?:
Yes

If yes to either of the above, provide:

A brief description of the electronic waste recycling program(s), including information about how electronic waste generated by the institution and/or students is recycled:
Waste electronics are picked up at all buildings by the recycle crew and placed in shipping boxes. Small electronics are collected at residence hall desks, collected by the Recycling Coordinator and placed in shipping boxes. Computer equipment is boxed by IT staff and the Recycling Coordinator. All electronics are sent to an R2 certified recycling company.

Is the institution’s electronic waste recycler certified under the e-Stewards and/or Responsible Recycling (R2) standards?:
Yes

Optional Fields 

Electronic waste recycled or otherwise diverted from the landfill or incinerator during the most recent year for which data is available during the previous three years:
13.31 Tons

The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
http://www.calvin.edu/directory/policies/waste-management

Additional documentation to support the submission:
Hazardous+Waste+Procedures+2018.pdf

Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.