University of Alaska Anchorage

POLLUTION PREVENTION, RECYCLING  & WASTE MINIMIZATION EFFORTS 

The University of Alaska is a member and active participant in the
Campus Consortium for Environmental Excellence (C2E2)

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Here are just a few of the acknowledgements that UAA has received over the years for our sound environmental practices: 

• EPA's most favorable category of Conditionally Exempt Small Quantity Generator of hazardous waste in 1990
• The Mayor's Pollution Prevention Award in 1991 
• The EPA Administrator's Region X finalist acknowledgment in 1992
• Green Star Award for Commitment to Environmental Responsibility in 1993  
• The Green Star Air Quality Award for Commitment to Clean Air in 2001
• Alaska Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner's Pollution Prevention Award for Outstanding Achievement in Waste Reduction in 2001. 

With a few exceptions, most of the programs that were started back in 1989 have undergone continuous improvement and expansion throughout the ensuing years. 

UAA'S RESOURCE RECOVERY AND CONSERVATION PROGRAM   Power Point Presentation (left click here to run or right click for downloading) Alternate Power Point Presentation With Photos (left click here to run or right click for downloading)   Many people will be able to run this application directly from this page and off the web by left clicking on the above link. You can also download the presentation by right clicking and "saving as" on your computer.

For information on Green Star and other recycling activities in the Anchorage area, please go to the Green Star website at http://www.greenstarinc.org/

U-Pass Program

 At a cost of approximately $50,000 per year, UAA employees and students with valid ID cards can ride the municipal People Mover on any route at no cost to themselves. During the fall and spring semesters, as many as 800 rides per day are used under the U-pass program. That translates to about 400 vehicles per day not coming to the UAA campus area relieving the region of traffic congestion and pollution. Besides decreasing combustion and hydrocarbon emissions, the program helps to decrease our use and dependence on fossil fuels. Another byproduct of the program is to reduce maintenance, renovation, development, and property acquisition costs associated with UAA's parking lot and road operations. With these reduced cost, the program is conservatively estimated to be paying for itself. Another benefit of the program is the support, encouragement and public exposure afforded to the People Mover's mass transportation system. UAA as a consistent user group, encourages more use of People Mover Services resulting in a cascading effect that benefits us all. This program is an excellent example of partnering between agencies and is a model for other businesses to emulate. 

Students and employees should stop at the campus information desk in the Campus Center to have their UAA ID cards validated with a People Mover sticker to use the U-Pass system. For more information on the U-Pass Program, contact Parking Services at 786-1119 or at aypark@uaa.alaska.edu.  To view a Power Point presentation on the U-Pass program go to http://www.uaa.alaska.edu/ehsrms/UPass.pps .

 

Please visit the People Mover website at http://www.peoplemover.org/ for more information, including routes and schedules, on Anchorage's mass transportation system.

Comprehensive Board of Regents Policies

Printing Standards  P05.08.01A.  General Statement : Publications produced by and for the University shall be simple, low in cost, and consistent. Publications shall be printed on recycled paper whenever it meets specific printing needs and shall be printed on both sides of the paper. A publication with actual annual general fund production costs in excess of $1,500 shall contain the disclosure statement if required by A.S. 44.99.210.

Resource Recovery and Conservation   P05.08.03   Each university department will take an active role in resource recovery and conservation by recycling; minimizing resource use and waste; increasing electronic data exchange versus duplication; purchasing recycled, reusable, and recyclable products; purchasing equipment that is compatible with these products; and, when feasible, printing copies on both sides of paper. The chief procurement officer will develop procurement procedures to implement this policy in accordance with applicable law and sound business practices.

Reducing Electrical Energy Demand

A prime example of minimizing resource use is our efforts to reduce electrical energy demand. From FY98 to FY99, UAA's  electricity cost went from $1,800,000 to $1,500,000 for a savings of $300,000 or a cost reduction of 17%. This was accomplished by: upgrading systems, delamping over lit areas, careful monitoring after-hours use of power, and a strong educational effort. A team of employees cruises the campus and issues "energy citations" to offices that fail to comply with savings initiatives. UAA is currently exploring partnership contracts with electrical systems upgrade firms to further increase our savings.  Projected savings are then to be used to fund the energy saving upgrades. 

For more information on ML&P, please visit their website.

Electronic Communications

As a twenty-first century university, UAA makes extensive use of electronic communications and delivery. The combined network and computational resources of the university exceeds all other private and public operations in Alaska. This does not just pertain to e-mail. Many of UAA's various newsletters, brochures, schedules, catalogs, etc., are web based. The effect of web-based publication is to reduce the need for paper and associated logistical support operations. Most of UAA's fund accounting procedures are performed electronically now so gone are the days of reams of greenbar paper stacked in our offices. In addition, UAA is actively involved with electronic distance delivery of courses so many students can fulfill their course requirements from home. This method of instruction saves much in transportation, duplication, facility, and energy costs and makes higher education available to more Alaskans.

Recycling of Newspaper and Cardboard

The Seawolf newspaper and office paper recycling dumpsters are located in the Arts  parking lot and the cardboard recycling dumpster is located at the Commons kitchen loading lot. You can't miss the large yellow dumpsters with the green Seawolf logo on their sides. Drive by with your office paper, old newspapers and cardboard and drop the material off in the dumpsters. The Seawolf recycling center recycles over 50 tons of material each year. While UAA dedicates budget to this operation, it is partially offset by savings in solid waste disposal costs. As recycling becomes more viable in Alaska, we expect the center to expand its collection efforts for other materials. 

For more information on recycling activities at UAA, contact EHS/RMS at 786-1351 or at ayssg@uaa.alaska.edu. 

The UAA Union of Students Recycling Committee with the cooperation and assistance of the UAA Consortium Library employees began a pilot project to recycle office paper at the library a few years ago. The Union of Students has now hired a recycling coordinator and through their efforts, expansion of the program to many other areas on campus has occurred.

For more information about this project, contact the Union of Students at 786-1205 or abRecycle@uaa.alaska.edu . 

The University of Alaska Anchorage is Smoke-Free

Since 1989, smoking has not been permitted in UAA facilities as defined in UAA EHS/RMS Policy 19, Smoke-Free Environment. Smoking is only permitted in defined areas outside of buildings. That's an eleven year lead on the new municipal ordinance. While the health benefits are enormous, we can't ignore the other bottom-line benefits of a smoke-free workplace. While difficult to quantify, UAA believes that this policy has reduced worker illness rates and sick leave usage, increased productivity, decreased maintenance and custodial costs, and reduced or virtually eliminated trashcan fires on campus. A smoke-free workplace just makes sense!

For more information on smoke free environments, please go to the Municipality of Anchorage's "Smoke-Free" web site at www.muni.org/smoke.

Toner Cartridges usually can be returned to the seller for recycling. Alternately, ink refill kits are available locally and through many office supply catalogs.

Other Environmentally Friendly Activities at UAA

	UNION OF STUDENTS RECYCLING HOME PAGE
	UAA Student Sustainable Earth Society