Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 46.82
Liaison Ashley Woolman
Submission Date May 16, 2019
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

Western Colorado University
OP-21: Hazardous Waste Management

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.00 / 1.00 Ashley Woolman
Sustainability Coordinator
Facilities Services
"---" 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:
There are 2 certified asbestos removal experts on campus and we have a written plan re: where and how to remove asbestos. E-recycling stations are placed in residence halls and transferred to Facilities Services by students for MeTech. IT handles their E-waste through MeTech. Facilities handles all other campus technological waste, including batteries. Labs have hazardous waste pick up.

A brief description of how the institution safely disposes of hazardous, universal, and non-regulated chemical waste:
We have a pickup program through Waste Management to dispose of certain hazardous and chemical wastes. We also use environmentally responsible recycling companies like MeTech for e-waste/batteries.

A brief description of any significant hazardous material release incidents during the previous three years, including volume, impact and response/remediation:
None

A brief description of any inventory system employed by the institution to facilitate the reuse or redistribution of laboratory chemicals:
None

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:
We partner with a company called MeTech. They are an environmentally responsible recycler based out of Denver. They come up to campus 6 or 7 times per year to collect our e-waste.

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:
1.60 Tons

The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives 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.