Very often, our attention focuses on recycling; however, there are more effective ways to reduce the ecological footprint of our waste.
The waste hierarchy diagram presents methods of waste management from the most efficient to the least. The higher your solution is on the diagram, the better you are doing in terms of ecological footprint and resource preservation.
Waste prevention: Preventing and reducing waste in the first place. The University has set a target to reduce its waste generation by 10% by 2025.
Reuse: Increasing the reuse of materials across the University. One way of doing this is through the sharing portal WARPit.
Recycle: Recycling everything that can be, making sure Dry Mixed Recycling items are clean and dry and disposed of appropriately. See our waste guide and the A-Z of recycling for further details. The University has set a target to reach 40% non-residential recycling rate by 2025.
Energy recovery: The University’s general waste is used for energy recovery. We do not send non-hazardous waste to landfill.
Disposal: The University does not dispose of its non-hazardous waste in landfill.
