| Overall Rating | Silver |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 50.92 |
| Liaison | Gretchen Vanicor |
| Submission Date | June 22, 2021 |
University of Louisiana at Lafayette
OP-18: Waste Minimization and Diversion
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
2.84 / 8.00 |
Joe
Nelson Grad Assistant Sustainability |
Figures needed to determine total waste generated (and diverted):
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Materials recycled | 345 Tons | 6.88 Tons |
| Materials composted | 4.80 Tons | 0 Tons |
| Materials donated or re-sold | 3.45 Tons | 0 Tons |
| Materials disposed through post-recycling residual conversion | 0 Tons | 0 Tons |
| Materials disposed in a solid waste landfill or incinerator | 1,135.10 Tons | 1,477.79 Tons |
| Total waste generated | 1,488.35 Tons | 1,484.67 Tons |
A brief description of the residual conversion facility:
Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):
| Start Date | End Date | |
| Performance Period | July 1, 2018 | June 30, 2019 |
| Baseline Period | July 1, 2013 | June 30, 2014 |
A brief description of when and why the waste generation baseline was adopted:
Figures needed to determine "Weighted Campus Users”:
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Number of students resident on-site | 3,270 | 2,209 |
| Number of employees resident on-site | 119 | 10 |
| Number of other individuals resident on-site | 0 | 0 |
| Total full-time equivalent student enrollment | 14,412 | 14,074 |
| Full-time equivalent of employees | 2,071 | 1,862 |
| Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education | 953 | 96 |
| Weighted campus users | 12,494.75 | 12,434.75 |
Total waste generated per weighted campus user:
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Total waste generated per weighted campus user | 0.12 Tons | 0.12 Tons |
Percentage reduction in total waste generated per weighted campus user from baseline:
Percentage of materials diverted from the landfill or incinerator by recycling, composting, donating or re-selling, performance year:
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 | Yes |
| Other (please specify below) | No |
A brief description of other materials the institution has recycled, composted, donated and/or re-sold:
Plastic bags and films
Materials intended for disposal but subsequently recovered and reused on campus, performance year:
Does the institution use single stream recycling to collect standard recyclables in common areas?:
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?:
Average contamination rate for the institution’s recycling program:
A brief description of any recycling quality control mechanisms employed:
A brief description of the institution's waste-related behavior change initiatives:
The University's Sustainability Strategic Plan focuses on a variety of change initiatives. Resident assistants in campus housing are trained to be ambassadors for sustainability. They teach and encourage on-campus students to engage in sustainable behavior. The University has also placed co-located bins throughout campus, removed bags and straws from dining areas, and installed water fountains with a water-bottle-filling attachment.
A brief description of the institution's waste audits and other initiatives to assess its materials management efforts and identify areas for improvement:
The University has performed several waste audits to assess the type and quantity of material being disposed. A waste audit was performed in collaboration with Grainger in order to assess waste material at strategic locations on campus. The University's housing department also periodically performs visual audits of residential housing bins. Lastly, the University's waste hauler (Republic Services) periodically provides contamination reports.
A brief description of the institution's procurement policies designed to prevent waste:
The University's strategic plan encourages discussion and engagement with purchasing agents to consider purchasing decisions from a life cycle approach. The University has also banned the use of styrofoam products in university facilities.
A brief description of the institution's surplus department or formal office supplies exchange program that facilitates reuse of materials:
The UL Lafayette Surplus Warehouse stores all property purchased by the University not in use, and these items will be used by other employees of the University or sent to an auction hosted by the state government.
A brief description of the institution's platforms to encourage peer-to-peer exchange and reuse:
A brief description of the institution's limits on paper and ink consumption:
The University uses a print management software (Papercut) to reduce costs associated with excessive printing. Students are allowed to print 250 pages for free and additional pages cost ten cents each.
A brief description of the institution's initiatives to make materials available online by default rather than printing them:
The University offers an electronic Academic Catalog and not a print version.
A brief description of the institution's program to reduce residence hall move-in/move-out waste:
Goodwill Not Landfill is an annual initiative to encourage resident hall students to donate their unwanted items in good condition to the local Goodwill stores. Goodwill places bins in each of the residence halls in order to collect the material.
A brief description of the institution's programs or initiatives to recover and reuse other materials intended for disposal:
The University of Louisiana at Lafayette collects and recycles plastic bags and film from home football games and throughout the University (multiple plastic bag and film stations throughout campus). By partnering with the company Trex, our plastic bags and film are recycled, and once the University recycles 500Ibs of plastic bags and film, Trex creates a bench out of recycled material and sends it to the University. We have received two benches.
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:
Data for total landfill and recycling is converted from waste bills provided by our hauler, Republic Services. Republic reports service in volume. To get tonnage for this report we assume a percentage full of dumpsters and adjust total volume before converting to tons using EPA weight of waste material numbers.
Our total bills include volume for waste collected at NIRC, which is outside of our campus boundary. The total weight submitted here is reduced by the amount of waste generated at this site.
Data for total landfill and recycling is converted from waste bills provided by our hauler, Republic Services. Republic reports service in volume. To get tonnage for this report we assume a percentage full of dumpsters and adjust total volume before converting to tons using EPA weight of waste material numbers.
Our total bills include volume for waste collected at NIRC, which is outside of our campus boundary. The total weight submitted here is reduced by the amount of waste generated at this site.
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.