Overall Rating Gold
Overall Score 78.59
Liaison Beverley Ayeni
Submission Date March 1, 2024

STARS v2.2

University of Toronto Mississauga
OP-20: Hazardous Waste Management

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.00 / 1.00 Minali Giani
Sustainability Intern
Facilities Management and Planning
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Part 1. Hazardous waste minimization and disposal

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:
Solid waste is repacked into 200L drums; this reduces the amount of 20L pails being incinerated, and also reduces disposal costs. Purchasing Acetone and 2-Propynol in 200L drums is not only more cost effective, but also reduces the amount of glass waste generated. 4L amber glass bottles are reused, where possible, as containers for the Acetone and 2-Propynol. We have also retrofitted most of our buildings to LED light bulbs, which have an extremely long life and therefore cut down on the number of light tubes needing to be recycled.

A brief description of how the institution safely disposes of hazardous, universal, and non-regulated chemical waste:
UTM Stores/Receiving accepts and disposes of, on average per month, 1000L of liquid organic waste, 200L of liquid inorganic waste, 100L-200L of corrosive waste, and 10 drums of solid waste. The vast majority of liquid and solid waste arrives in 20L pails; glass bottles are discouraged due to breakability and cost of disposal. All chemical waste is stored in a prefabricated shed located just outside of Davis Receiving; the shed is emptied monthly by our current waste disposal contractor, Daniels.

A brief description of any significant hazardous material release incidents during the previous three years, including volume, impact and response/remediation:
There have been no University related releases of a significant amount at UTM 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:
Due to the high purity required of the chemicals used for research purposes, there is minimal re-use at this time.

Part 2. Electronic waste diversion

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:
E-waste that is generated by UTM is securely stored in the Davis Building prior to pickup by our e-waste recycler, Quantum Lifecycle. Quantum is R2 certified and does not send any material to landfill. E-waste is either refurbished and reused, or separated into component materials and recycled. Hard drives are removed and data securely destroyed prior to recycling.

This year, the Sustainability Office has introduced three central specialty recycling stations on campus. The UTM community can drop off their batteries, e-waste (non-UofT owned), and printer cartridges at the centres.
The goal of the centres is to increase awareness of the importance of special item recycling and encourage the UTM community to easily drop off and recycle their special items.

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

Optional Fields 

Website URL where information about the institution’s hazardous waste program is available:
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Additional documentation to support the submission:
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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.