The Campus Services department has been awarded a four star rating in the Zero Waste Awards.
Established by letsrecycle.com and now in their tenth year, the awards recognise organisations for their efforts to reduce waste.
Entries are split into 10 categories and allows organisations to benchmark themselves against those in the same sector.
The ranking is given by industry experts under a star system. The highest award of five stars, means an organisation has invested in the principle of continuous improvement and actively demonstrates Zero Waste achievements.
Some of the key initiatives and achievements that Campus Services was recognised for include:
Waste prevention
- the success of our Leave No Trace environmental campaign
our Sustainable Food Commitment - in particular the amount of disposables removed and food waste reduced:
- in the last academic year, we prevented over 3800 meals from going to waste by selling them as Munch Boxes
- Too Good to Go bags saved 625 meals from going to waste, an average equivalent of 1562.5 C02e.
our procurement process that involves sourcing products with environmentally friendly packaging
Reuse
- how we reuse materials such as furniture and kitchen equipment
- in the last academic year, 150,606 hot drinks were sold in reusable cups rather than disposables
Recycling and composting
- in the last academic year, around 12 tonnes of coffee grounds were used on the campus grounds to enrich soil
Energy recovery
- in the last academic year, we contributed 54 tonnes of food waste to an anaerobic digestion plant. The food waste produces nutrient rich biofertilizer and any excess heat is captured to generate electricity.
- all general waste from hospitality is sent to a waste plant in Bristol. The energy from the plant powers a plastic recycling facility on the same site and provides energy for the National Grid.
- waste cooking oil from hospitality outlets is converted into biodiesel