University of Alabama
OP-18: Waste Minimization and Diversion
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
Reporter |
Jeremy
Faulkner Manager of Recycling Recycling |
Parts 1 and 2. Waste per person
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Materials recycled | 1,357.18 Metric tons | 1,144.46 Metric tons |
| Materials composted | 2.76 Metric tons | 0.43 Metric tons |
| Materials donated or re-sold | 191.94 Metric tons | 0 Metric tons |
| Materials disposed through post-recycling residual conversion | 0 Metric tons | 0 Metric tons |
| Materials disposed in a solid waste landfill or incinerator | 6,964.64 Metric tons | 13,242.35 Metric tons |
| Total waste generated | 8,516.51 Metric tons | 14,387.22 Metric tons |
If reporting post-recycling residual conversion, provide:
Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):
| Start Date | End Date | |
| Performance Period | Oct. 1, 2022 | Sept. 30, 2023 |
| Baseline Period | Oct. 1, 2014 | Sept. 30, 2015 |
If end date of the baseline year/period is 2004 or earlier, provide:
Figures needed to determine "Weighted Campus Users”:
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Number of students resident on-site | 9,000 | 8,419 |
| Number of employees resident on-site | 0 | 0 |
| Number of other individuals resident on-site | 0 | 0 |
| Total full-time equivalent student enrollment | 36,155 | 36,155 |
| Full-time equivalent of employees | 2,375 | 8,296 |
| Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education | 5,918 | 3,568 |
| Weighted campus users | 26,709 | 32,767 |
Total waste generated per weighted campus user:
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Total waste generated per weighted campus user | 0.32 Metric tons | 0.44 Metric tons |
Percentage reduction in total waste generated per weighted campus user from baseline:
Part 3. Waste diverted from the landfill or incinerator
Percentage of materials diverted from the landfill or incinerator (including up to 10 percent attributable to post-recycling residual conversion):
In the waste figures reported above, has the institution recycled, composted, donated and/or re-sold the following materials?:
| Yes or No | |
| Paper, plastics, glass, metals, and other recyclable containers | Yes |
| Food | Yes |
| Cooking oil | Yes |
| Plant materials | Yes |
| Animal bedding | No |
| White goods (i.e. appliances) | Yes |
| Electronics | Yes |
| Laboratory equipment | Yes |
| Furniture | Yes |
| Residence hall move-in/move-out waste | Yes |
| Scrap metal | Yes |
| Pallets | Yes |
| Tires | No |
| Other (please specify below) | Yes |
A brief description of other materials the institution has recycled, composted, donated and/or re-sold:
UA recycles motor oil and car batteries. UA recycles toner ink cartridges. UA recycles light bulbs.
Optional Fields
Active Recovery and Reuse
Recycling Management
Does the institution use dual stream recycling to collect standard recyclables in common areas?:
Does the institution use multi-stream recycling to collect standard recyclables in common areas?:
Contamination and Discard Rates
A brief description of any recycling quality control mechanisms employed:
When recycling bins and dumpsters are emptied, all recyclable materials are brought to UA's material recovery facility and hand-sorted to remove contamination. Materials are sorted by type (i.e. office paper, newspaper, books, cardboard, #1 plastic, aluminum cans, steel cans etc.) and then baled separately. This purges almost all contamination out of the recycling stream.
Programs and Initiatives
UA added a surplus property department to minimize landfill waste. A pre-consumer composting program was created to divert food waste in dining halls. Eighty blue cardboard only dumpster were purchased and put in key locations around campus. Three hundred outdoor recycling bins were paired with outdoor trash cans all over campus. New dormitory buildings were built with dedicated recycling rooms. Water bottle fillers were added to every building to discourage single use plastic. Individual printers were removed from offices and a policy requiring double-sided printing was put in place to reduce paper and ink usage. Reverse vending machines were added to campus so that students/staff/guests can conveniently recycle plastic bottles and aluminum cans. RVMs offer incentives for recycling to encourage repeat usage.
A brief description of the institution's waste audits and other initiatives to assess its materials management efforts and identify areas for improvement:
Recycling staff perform monthly dumpster audits. Every building on campus is assigned a building representative. If issues arise during dumpster audits, the building representative and the custodial supervisor are contacted to make changes. Every January, a luncheon is hosted for all building reps to attend. During the luncheon, they are educated/updated on the recycling expectations for each building as well as the surplus property process.
A brief description of the institution's procurement policies designed to prevent waste:
A brief description of the institution's surplus department or formal office supplies exchange program that facilitates reuse of materials:
As a state-funded institution, we are prohibited from throwing away, discarding, or giving away assets to any particular individual or entity. Therefore, when items are no longer useful to a department, they should be sent to Surplus. Once items are transferred to Surplus, most items are available for use by any department on campus, free of charge. This allows Surplus to reuse property, rather than spend state funds for the same items, which saves money and unnecessary spending. Once items have been included in a public sale, they are no longer free of charge for departmental use. Public sale is done through auction on www.govdeals.com.
A brief description of the institution's platforms to encourage peer-to-peer exchange and reuse:
The SGA's Director of Environmental Affairs and a student organization, the UA Environmental Council, partner to offer the UA ECo Free Market. The ECo market allows students to donate clothing, accessories and school supplies. The market hosts monthly swaps where students can bring unwanted items and swap them for other used donations. The ECo market normally sets up shop at the student union.
A brief description of the institution's limits on paper and ink consumption:
All personal printers were removed from offices in favor of shared departmental printers. Printing is required to be double-sided to reduce paper. Printing in libraries and many computer labs is not free and must be paid for per page.
A brief description of the institution's initiatives to make materials available online by default rather than printing them:
Departments are encouraged to use docuSign, Box, SharePoint and other similar cloud-based storage to share documents electronically.
A brief description of the institution's program to reduce residence hall move-in/move-out waste:
Cardboard is collected at Move-In. Each residence hall has dedicated cardboard collection points. In August 2023, UA recycled over 185,000 lbs of cardboard. The bulk of this came from residence hall move-in. During move-out, Housing donates leftover furniture, clothing and school supplies to various organizations.
A brief description of the institution's programs or initiatives to recover and reuse other materials intended for disposal:
A partnership with the University of Alabama and Coca-Cola has brought four "reverse vending machines" (RVMs) to campus. These machines look similar to normal vending machines. Students are able to deposit plastic bottles and aluminum cans into the machines. The machines track how many items are recycled this way and makes a small donation to the West Alabama Food Bank per item recycled. The RVMs have been placed in the residential hall communities.
Website URL where information about the institution’s waste minimization and diversion efforts is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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.