University of California, Irvine
OP-19: Waste Minimization and Diversion

2011 is the year when the data collection for solid waste is most complete. It is also when current recycling programs /processes were implemented.

Carpet recycling is also included in our waste diversion. As part of our purchase agreement, carpet recycling is a requirement. The vendor must provide documentation demonstrating that any carpet removed is recycled. In 2017, 30.83 tons of carpet were recycled.

We have done waste audits at both the MSW and Commingled Recycling transfer stations to identify what items are getting into the wrong streams, we can target those items in our student and staff education. We have created signage with photos and educational videos as well as training materials to help make each sorting stream easy to understand. All of this educational material is available our websites and YouTube. We use standardized signs through out campus so they have color coded system but we also use different colored bin liners so our custodial team can deposited each stream in the correct bin. Blue clear for recycling, clear for food waste and gray clear for landfill. These bin liners help minimize sorting areas at the final stage to the exterior bins.

Our campus has participated in the RecycleMania Competition for the past 6 years to create a buzz about recycling on campus. We have been able to remain in the top 10, which is a source of pride for our students and staff. Our staff and student education has shifted from focusing on recycling to waste minimization through, reuse, resale, donation and reduce purchasing. In 2017 we saw the results of that shift in focus with the lowest amount of waste to landfill in the past 10 years. When it comes to signage we have been using more infographics so that readers understand why reduce, reuse and recycling are important to our environment. Education is geared to create better understanding of why we promote sustainability "when we know better we do better".

Waste characterization studies as well as waste audits are performed at our campus & student housing buildings as part of our recycling program. This information is used to determine what items are still in the waste stream that could be diverted through recycling or composting, and the information is shared with the building staff to help educate them about how they can recycle more. The diversion rates are shared with our student housing residents each quarter so they can see how their housing unit stacks up to others; this creates a healthy completion among housing communities. Waste audits are also done as part of the LEED EBOM certification process. Waste characterizations are done at our transfer station to help us learn what items in our waste stream we need to highlight with our campus staff and students to either recycle or compost.

UC Irvine adheres to the University of California's Sustainable Practices Policy, which strives for the elimination of all materials sent to the landfill by 2020: http://policy.ucop.edu/doc/3100155/Sustainable%20Practices Following is language from the section on Environmentally Preferable Purchasing: 1. Environmentally preferable purchasing underlies and enables all other areas of sustainable practice in this Policy. Therefore, the University will maximize its procurement of environmentally preferable products and services. 2. The University will use its purchasing power to target environmentally preferable products and services for volume-discounted pricing to make them cost-competitive with conventional products and services. 3. For products and services without available environmentally preferable alternatives, the University will work with its existing and potential suppliers and leverage the University’s purchasing power and market presence to develop sustainable choices. 4. The University will integrate sustainability requirements into its practices for competitive bidding in materiel and services procurement, allowing for suppliers that meet these requirements to earn additional evaluation points. 5. Packaging for all products procured by the University should be designed, produced, and managed in an environmentally sustainable manner. The University shall seek products that have take-back programs, as appropriate. 6. When requested, suppliers citing environmentally preferable purchasing claims shall provide proper certification or detailed information on environmental claims, including benefits, durability, and take-back, reuse, and recyclable properties. Additionally, suppliers are responsible for providing proof of University of California-accepted third-party certification based upon the requirements of the University’s Procurement Services Department located in the Office of the President. 7. The goal of this section G shall be applied within the constraints of research needs and budgetary requirements and in compliance with applicable rules, regulations and laws. In addition our UCI procurement department has changed the order that supplies are listed for purchase on our e-commerce site "UCI Buy." The items listed by most sustainable items first. Styrofoam products are either not available or at the bottom of the long list of available items.

UC Irvine maintains Peter’s Exchange, which facilitates the salvage of quality goods for re-use by other areas of the campus and the community. The campus diverts goods from the landfill and extends their useful life by finding new users for these products. E- Waste recycle is also handled at Peter's Exchange offering both reuse of computers and electronics as well as bulk recycling of e-waste items. When goods cannot be re-used, the campus looks to sell, donate or recycle these surplus items. For more information about Peter's Exchange see https://portal.uci.edu/uPortal/f/welcome/p/uci-marketplace-surplus.u20l1n205/max/render.uP

The campus has 2 Facebook pages for peer-to-peer exchange and reuse: https://www.facebook.com/groups/293038857449668/about/ is for student/staff furniture for sale "Free and For Sale UCI" https://www.facebook.com/groups/966853096688119/about/ facilitates the exchange and sale of all other items between students.

The central campus pay-printing service limits printing by imposing a $0.10/page charge. This service is provided in UCI Libraries and centrally managed computing labs. Some schools and departments provide some printing to their students on specially located printers. All campus printers default printing preferences are set for double sided printing and our procurement sources 100% recycled printing paper.

As of the 2011-2012 academic year, UC Irvine no longer publishes a printed catalogue. UC Irvine’s Schedule of Classes has been exclusively online since 2004. For more information, see http://www.reg.uci.edu.

UCI has an annual student move-out donation and recycle program each June. The 2017 Move-Out Donation Throwdown program was a two-week-long campaign to raise awareness that reuse is just as important as recycling. The housing and recycling team, in collaboration with Goodwill of Orange County, places collection carts inside all dorms and community centers for the six student housing communities ( 7,000 people), and these carts are emptied every other day. Additional recycle bins are placed outside the buildings and emptied daily to encourage recycling for things that cannot be donated. Each housing community posts an e-flyer on its website that describes the program and the locations for the collection carts and recycling bins. The Move Out donation event is advertised on campus electronic billboards and in the student newspaper, New University. The event is approached as a competition with the goal of exceeding the prior year’s donations. The Move Out Donation program has gained success every year. In 2010, the first program collected 67 tons, including furniture; the 2017 program resulted in 59.2 tons of clothing, household items, and electronics being donated to Goodwill of Orange County. Due to the popularity of the program each housing community (7 total) has a Goodwill donation box that is accessible for donations 24/7. This way we never miss an opportunity to donate for reuse. Our move-in program starts before the students arrive on campus. Through the new student move-in program students are encouraged to reduce waste prior to coming on campus by reducing overpackaging prior to arrival. We also teach about campus recycle practices at this time. We have a sustainable student guide that is used as part of the new student training. It is sent via email to students as well as posted on the Resident Advisors' bulletin boards. http://www.fm.uci.edu/files/SustainableStudentHandguide.pdf During move-in additional cardboard collection bins are placed in dorm areas for the collection of these used move in boxes to be recycled.

During our campus recycling presentations to students and staff, reduce and re-use is highlighted as preferable to recycling. Some of the ways we put that into action is through the use of the 150 hydration water bottle filling stations available on campus and in student housing to fill reusable bottles. Since 2010 the refillable water bottle filling stations have been credited with the reduction of disposable bottle sales by 30%. Each year these campus bottle filling stations provide more than 298,355 gallons of water, eliminating the use of 2.35 million disposable bottles (equal to 65 tons of plastic waste avoided). Another way the campus encourages waste minimization is by requesting that documents be printed only when necessary. In addition, campus copy machines are set to the default of double sided printing to reduce paper use and waste.