In order to make a positive contribution to lowering our carbon footprint, several measures were included in the Roadmap Sustainable campus to visibly reduce waste.
Waste management at EUR
At EUR, the separation of waste is done as much as possible by employees and students themselves. In order to steer this process in the right direction, new waste bins have been placed throughout the campus since the end of August 2020. Here, organic waste, coffee cups, paper, plastic and residual waste are collected separately. Other residual flows such as small chemical waste, glass, swill (cooked leftovers), white goods, construction and demolition waste were already collected separately per type through a waste management procedure.
Besides saving CO2 and energy, waste separation also raises awareness, which will eventually lead to a reduction in the amount of waste. Waste separation thus contributes to the creation of a waste-neutral campus.
The results we aim for in the coming years are:
- 75% reduction in the amount of corporate waste through separate waste collection;
- 50% reduction in the amount of waste produced;
- 50% reduction of packaging materials;
- 50% reduction of coffee cups, and stimulating reuse through cup sharing.
These measures will save more than 300 tons of CO2 per year. Awareness campaigns will be launched this year in collaboration with the waste management company, to further increase the percentage of separated waste.
Composting machine
At the beginning of this year, the first step towards reducing the carbon footprint was taken in the form of a composting machine. A composting machine quickly converts organic fractions such as swill and coffee grounds into compost. This results in 85 - 90% reduction in volume and weight. Processing this type of waste on site reduces the need for storage space and improves hygiene because there is no need for swill containers, which usually provide a breeding ground for rats. Since the arrival of the composting machine, 11,000 kg of organic waste has been converted into compost resulting in a savings of 220 kg CO2 compared to traditional processing of organic waste elsewhere in NL.
Waste overview 2022 & 2023
Higher Education Waste Benchmark 2022 - 2024
As EUR we are actively involved in the Higher Education Waste Benchmark. The sustainability circle "waste and circular" higher education is conducting a waste benchmark in 2022 and 2023. This circle is a collaboration of about 20 higher education institutions, the Rijksdienst voor Ondernemend Nederland and Stimular Foundation. The purpose of the waste benchmark is to gain more insight into the waste of educational institutions and to compare results and share best practices. Over the whole of 2021 and the first half of 2022, the EUR scores above average compared to 6 other universities with a place in the top 3. The Benchmark also showed that there are still points for improvement, based on which we're adjusting our policies.
