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Policy Statement
University activities and facilities significantly impact land, air, water, other natural resources, and public health. The University is committed to the protection of these resources in all its activities and at all stages of acquisition, design, development, and operation of its campus facilities.
Activities
Faculty, staff, and students must protect the environment by:
- Planning activities to minimize the amount of waste produced and resources used.
- Conserving aquatic resources.
- Reusing and recycling materials whenever possible, by using existing campus programs.
- Using established programs for proper disposal of hazardous materials. Disposal of any laboratory or maintenance chemicals through the trash or sanitary sewer system without advance notice and written approval by the Department of Environmental Health and Safety (DEHS) is prohibited.
- Protecting soil, surface water, and groundwater from contamination.
- Reporting chemical spills immediately.
Anyone discovering a spill of what they believe is a hazardous material must report the spill by dialing 9-1-1. This will ensure that the appropriate authorities are notified.
Faculty, staff and students must comply with environmental laws and regulations . If a faculty, staff, or student is cited for violating a law or regulation, their unit is responsible for the resulting fines or penalties.
Facilities
Acquisition and Development. Planning, Space, and Real Estate (PSRE), for acquisitions of new sites, and Capital Project Management (CPM) and U Construction, for development of existing sites, must incorporate into their transactions and projects the review of the environmental impacts from hazardous substances and the cleanup of identified pollution to levels appropriate for planned uses of the site.
Design. The design team must ensure that facility plans minimize the environmental impacts of building and equipment and meet environmental standards in time for agency permit review.
Construction. Project managers and contractors must ensure that construction and renovation of facilities is done in a manner that protects the waters of the State, minimizes waste, and mitigates discovered environmental contamination.
Maintenance and Operations. Facilities managers must operate building systems and control equipment to meet design requirements; review practices and infrastructure systems so that sewer systems are separate and dedicated to either storm water or sanitary effluent and provide information for reports to environmental agencies.
Reason for Policy
This policy and its related procedures implement the environmental commitments of Board of Regents Policy: Sustainability and Energy Efficiency (PDF), and to ensure compliance with all local, state, and federal environmental regulations.