closing the recycling loop in university halls of residence

Closing the Recycling Loopin University Halls of Residence

Victoria HandsEnvironmental & Sustainability Coordinator,

London School of Economics

London’s University Halls of Residence Recycling Project Founder

OutlineBackgroundWhy halls of residenceReuse - end of term schemes Recycling – win win win scenariosPurchasing • Reuse to reduce purchasing • Buy recycled to close the loop

Benefits for Halls of Residence

• Potential waste management cost savings

• Response to increased student demand for recycling facilities

• Empowering residents to be aware

• Reducing end of term waste peak

• Providing low or no cost items

Benefits for Universities

• Competitive advantage for attracting students and staff

• Contributing to high environmental standards

• Demonstrating social responsibility

• Backing up academic expertise with everyday practice

Benefits for Local Authorities

• Meeting government recycling targets

• Extending recycling provision

• Creating a healthier environment

Why Halls of Residence?• High density• Waste audit - 50-70% recyclable• Life change• Contractual obligations• Established communications• Backing up teaching • Habitual behaviour• Vocal active students• Role out across campus!!

The Waste Hierarchy

REDUCE

Halls can reuse & buy recycled content REUSE

Halls save on waste disposal & purchasing and extend service provision

RECYCLE

Halls can access free or low cost recycling

LAST OPTION LANDFILL

A Practical Approach• Identification of stakeholders

• Background research

• Initial contact

• Interviews / questionnaires / reports

• Partnership building & dialogue

• Contact sheet & monitoring

Key Stakeholders• Local Authorities (recycling officers)• Waste management division

• Universities (environmental manager)• Academic• Operational • Students union

• Halls of Residence (management) • Cleaners• Students

Project OriginsExperiences from:

• Students

• Cleaning staff (including contractors)

• Hall management

• Universities

• Local Authorities

• Reuse charities

The Waste Paper, issue 68 October 2000

Reuse Schemes• Reuse Implementation Plan

– (RIP Waste)

• Notices• Collection points• Sorting and volunteers

– Types of donations• Liaison with charities

– Hostels, reuse, London Remade• Cleaning up

Reuse Donations• 1 box of cutlery, 1 box of utensils

• 3 boxes of plates, 4 boxes of pans

• 40 black bin bags of men’s clothing

• 10 toasters, 11 kettles

• 2 computers, 8 screens

• 30 drying racks, 40 dish drainers

• 8 computer chairs

Reuse Scheme 2005

• 10 halls of residence – 3,748 students

• Estimated reuse participated rate: 10% - 300 students

• 6 tonnes diverted from landfill – 20 kg per student (textiles, IT equipment, furniture)

Textiles 2005:

650kgs from 650 studentsEstimated 65 participants

=10 kg of textiles per student

Recycling• Waste audit

– 20% paper/card– 18% compostable– 14% glass– 13% plastic– 4% cans

Start of term most effective

Design Challenges • Micro kitchens and source separation

– Same as other urban MODs– Small on floorspace– Could look good/trendy/cool– Reuse is real use!!– Standard source separation does not

respond to the reality of micro living

Design Challenges• Design of new halls of residence and

greening the campus– Sustainable living– Energy, water, waste– Responsibility and empowerment

• Refurbishment of older halls of residence– Often without lifts

Action Plan1. Recycle• Facilities and collections (external & internal)2. Reuse • End of term schemes and collaborations3. Raise Awareness• Communication materials (kitchen posters, student

tips leaflet)• Events with users (freshers fayres) and staff

training4. Reduce • Green procurement • Influence student purchasing power

FindingsIssues Findings

Responsibility Responsibility to take out recycling materials given to students. Results in full learning experience and responsible actions. Cleaners and all hall staff have a new learning experience to take into their non-working lives.

Ease Recycling is not difficult if good infrastructure and effective awareness raising is provided. In fact, waste is easier to manage. The benefits of segregated waste include reduced odour.

Costs Low or no cost because of recycling targets set for local authorities by Europe

Kitchen space Most kitchens do have space for recycling containers. There are many designs of bins. New builds must design in recycling provision.

External space In many central London halls space is limited to the pavement (also used by public-difficult to assess). Wheelie bins may be an option here.

Champions High rotation of students and local authority staff but continuity can be found through wardens, managers and local councillors.

London Boroughs Universities / Intercollegiates

Halls of residence

No. of Students Estimated No. of Kitchens

Barking & Dagenham 1 1 508 85Barnet 2 5 1,007 168Camden 5 33 6,620 1,103Ealing 1 1 331 55Enfield 1 4 815 136Greenwich 2 5 1,480 247Hackney 5 5 642 107Hammersmith & Fulham 2 2 261 44Haringey 5 8 795 133Hillingdon 1 8 2,661 444Islington 5 13 2,574 429Kensington & Chelsea 3 11 906 151Kingston Upon Thames 1 4 2,212 369Lambeth 2 4 726 121Lewisham 2 7 1,127 188Richmond Upon Thames 1 1 218 36Southwark 4 14 4,928 491Tower Hamlets 3 24 1,536 256Wandsworth 3 25 3,414 569Westminster 8 18 3,710 618

Total 1 57 193 36,471 5,748

Total 1 + 5% 38,295 6,382

Cost of reusable bags £0.97 per unit for quantities over 1000 £ 6,190

Cost of reusable box £4.99 per unit £ 31,848

Cost of convert bins £14.95 per unit £ 95,417

Closing the LoopReuse - end of term schemes Recycling – win win win scenariosPurchasing • Reuse to reduce purchasing • Buy recycled to close the loop• National support??

London’s University Halls of Residence Recycling Project

www.crispej.org.uk/hallsrecycling

Victoria Hands

v.e.hands@lse.ac.uk

Closing the loop by procuring higher recycled content in paper and construction

EAUC Annual Conference - 11 April 2006

Jim Wiltshire - Procurement Project Manager

Kara Jones – WRAP Paper Advocate

Outline

● About WRAP

● Materials resource efficiency - why recycled

● Using procurement

● The opportunities in paper

● The opportunities in construction

●WRAP assistance

WRAP exists to

Create stable and efficient markets for recycled materials and products, and

Remove barriers to waste minimisation re-use and recycling

Closing the loop – why specifying recycled is so important

Specifying recycled in procurement of goods, works and

services

CREATING ECONOMIC VALUE FOR RECOVERED

MATERIALS

Waste awareness and minimisation

Waste segregation,

home composting etc.

Product development

Business investment and

development

Materialsresource efficiency

Materials resource efficiency cycle

A two thirds reduction in consumption of fossil fuels and virgin materials is needed to achieve a sustainable and globally equitable level

WWF – “One planet living study” - 2004

Materials with recycled content Reduce

raw material

use

Reduce waste

Materials efficiency

Reduce landfillRecycling

Save resource

s

What are we talking about?

Waste minimisation,segregation& recycling

Renewables

Reclaimed materials

Recycled Content

Materials Resource Efficiency

Procurement policy drivers

Scottish ExecutivePolicy Commitment

2003 2004 2005 2006

OGC-AE11SBTGGovt. Sustainable Procurement Group

ODPM-PPS1Code for Sustainable Homes

Landfill Tax (1996)

Increasing thrust of sustainability policy

Scottish ExecutivePolicy ProposalBuying into

Sustainable Procurement (WPI)

Where do we start ? - major applications to consider

Construction

Estates management

Printed matter

Tissue – catering and hygiene

Using procurement

IdentifyinIdentifying needg need

RequiremenRequirement t

specificatiospecificationn

Supplier Supplier selectionselection

Tender Tender evaluationevaluation

Contract Contract managemenmanagemen

tt

Key point of intervention

European Commission handbook on environmental public procurement:

“As a contracting authority, you have the right…to demand a minimum percentage of recycled and reused content where possible”.

OGC AE11:“The (project) brief should include an outcome-based requirement for overall materials efficiency, such as a minimum requirement for recycled content in the project .”

Recycled content office &

publication papersfor your organisation

Why?

Kara.Jones@wrap.org.uk 11th Apr-06

To cover:

• Paper waste context• Why?......... environmental• Why?......... CSR / marketing• Why?......... quality and cost

• Product range

• How the Advocate Team can help

Paper waste in context

• UK > 100,000,000T commercial, industrial & municipal waste per year.

• UK consumes approx 12,800,000T paper & board

• We recycle approx 7,000,000Tpa of paper & board

• But…….. More than 5,000,000Tpa still goes into landfill

• Landfill over 1,500,000T of paper from offices per year

• Less than 4% of office / marketing / business papers have any recycled content

Landfill / incinerate or recycle ?• Landfill sites are filling up

• Landfilled paper produces methane and leakage contributes to global warming

• Waste incineration not optimum and a long planning cycle

• Landfill or incineration is a waste of a valuable resource

• Most LCA’s show recycling is best

• We can recycle - economically

• Now a legal requirement to reduce landfill

= Recycle

Your customers are aware..

• National and EU push to increased recycling• Increased recycling and promotion:

– Rolling out more kerbside collection– National advertising– Local advertising

• Government announcements on environmental issues and sustainability

• Increasing central and local government sustainable procurement

• Constant press coverage on all things environmental

In the media…

In the media…

In the media…

Why buy recycled content paper?.........

Recycling = “collection” +

“buy-recycled”

Your impact

…is about avoiding….

landfill

The prime “buy-recycled” argument is not about….

saving trees

Why?......... Environmental

Landfill, methane production… also:

• Recycled paper also typically:

– uses less energy in production

– creates less VOC’s,

– uses less transport miles

– has a significantly smaller “environmental footprint”

– reduces pressure on forest resources

Why?.... CSR / marketing

Your customers:• Your “customers” are increasingly being asked to recycle• 50% of the population describe themselves as

“committed recyclers” (source NOP tracking survey Mar 2005)

• Recycled / recycling is seen as “good”. Opportunity to be associated with a positive feelings such as:

– caring– future looking– ethical– doing your bit…

• Universities, and other higher education authorities, are seen as exemplars, providing education, values and the future for the next generation

Why?.... CSR / marketing

Stakeholders / Investors• Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) a necessity for

high profile organisations• Purchasing recycled materials is a positive action.• >50% of your staff are committed recyclers,

positive reinforcement of your organisational values• Supporting government commitment to sustainable

procurement

• Recycled content paper is:– a “quick” win– A demonstration you are doing something

So what is available?

• Paper for printed publications• Magazine papers• Envelopes• Copier / printer paper• Tissue papers• Boxes• ………..

Why?....... quality and cost

• You do not need to compromise “quality” by procuring recycled content papers

– full colour publication papers

– office papers

• Technical developments have significantly improved the performance and cost of recycled papers

– brands are readily available which match the performance of virgin papers.

– need not pay more

• You can have a “traditional recycled look” if you want

It doesn’t have to be 100% recycledSuggested minimum specificationfor recycled content.• Copier / Office paper 70%• Printing Papers 50% (for marketing and

publications)• Tissue 100%

What is recycled content?• Post & pre-consumer waste.• Not mill broke

How WRAP can help you

• Advocacy team one2one support– Advice on product availability– On effective specification and policy for

recycled content– Technical advice– Facilitate trial material.– Free– Provided by a team experienced in paper and

print• Procurement guides:

– Recycled content Office and publication papers– Recycled content Tissue papers– Recycled content Business process papers

• Case studies• Technical information sheets• ……

Summary

Recycled paper:– Same quality– Need not cost more– Reduces landfill– Supports your CSR and marketing

Recycling = “collection” +

“buy-recycled”

You could say….…. using recycled paper is a no brainer!

thank you

The case for recycledin construction

Overall material consumption by construction industry (~420 Mt per year)

M tonnes

Quantity of construction and demolition waste generated (~90 Mt per year)

Waste construction materials that are recycled (~45 Mt per year)

Materials efficiency in construction

Headline Construction Figures

One of the UK’s most productive sectors, contributing almost 9% to the GDP

50% UK energy consumption associated with buildings – construction & use

90% non-energy minerals extracted used in construction - <1% new buildings uses reclaimed materials

Biggest consumer of material resources: 420 million tonnes/year

KEY SUSTAINABILITY GOALS

Energy Materials Water

Material & Product

selection

Material use & waste

management

Waste avoidance and minimisation

Collection segregation &

recycling

Return packaging & reduce over-

ordering

Specifying materials with low

env impact

Use of renewable materials

Use products with high recycled content

Using locally sourced CDW

Effi

cien

t use

of

finit

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atu

ral

mate

rials

Min

imis

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en

vir

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age

Mainstream, not green

Many mainstream products already include recycled content

A range of products offer above-average recycled content at no extra cost

The potential for diversion from landfill is substantial

Recycled content

Mainstream brands Eco-brands

0%

Quick Wins

Where will we find Quick Wins that are . . cost-effective with comparable performance and readily available?

Many examples in Concrete blocks Asphalt Paving slabs Bricks Flooring Various aggregate products

Ceiling tiles Chipboard Plasterboard Insulation Roof tiles

Examples of mainstream products available

Project specific example

Product type

Optionwith lowerrecycled content

Option with higher recycled content

Dense block 0% Hanson Conbloc - Up to 70%

Wall insulation 0% Superglass Superwall Cavity Slab > 80%

Concrete roof tile 0% Lafarge – various, e.g. Grovebury - 17%

Ceiling tiles >10% Armstrong – various – 28 to 52%

Intermediate floors,e.g. timber

50-70% Sonae – Sonaefloor – 90 to 95%

Floor coverings – safety

0% BSW Regupol Everroll rubber flooring - 80%

Using your procurement strategy to drive resource efficiency

Sustainable Buildings Task Group:

Specify 10% or higher minimum requirement for recycled content as a proportion of the value of materials for the whole project

You can also encourage higher performance e.g. through tender evaluation criteria

What is being achieved without asking for good practice?

Type of project Baseline/actual practice %

Cost neutral good practice %

Detached/terraced house

6 - 26 16-29

Commercial office 10* - 22 12*-30

School, hospital 12* - 20 15*-27

Road reconstruction 8 - 16 27-29

Bridge reconstruction

18 - 23 33-49

* Excluding building services

Housing example

Standard/actual practice

Good practice

(cost-neutral)

Timber-framed house, Hillcrest HA

7% 15%

Timber-framed house, Milnbank HA

12% 21%

Brick/block house, Taylor Woodrow

16% 20% – 28%

Steel framed housing example

Standard practice 20 – 23%

As built specification

23 - 25%

Good practice 26 – 29%

Best practice 30 – 31%

Product type Basecase

Quick Win

Insulation – Roof 0% 80% General fill 0% 50- 100% Insulation wool – external walls

50% 70%

facing Brick 5% 11 – 20%

Evidence base - DfES Exemplar designs for schools

Design S2 - Suburban edge of town setting

Design S5 - Inner city sites

City Academy, Brent – Recently completed

Design S2 Design S5 City Academy, Brent

Build cost of school £M 14.1 15.1 12.2

Approx value of materials £M 3.3 3.7 3.6

% recycled content – Standard practice 15.5% 17.3% 12.9%

% recycled content – Product substitution 18.1% 21.2% 15.6%

Tonnage avoiding landfill – Standard practice

400 490 830

Tonnage avoiding landfill – Product substitution

3100 4800 4300

Case study – Glasgow school

Best opportunities to increase recycled content

Drainage belowground

Plasterboard dry lining, partitions, ceiling (inside)

Mixing, casting, curing in-situ concrete

General fixtures, furnishings and equipment, flooring (inside)

Asphalt

Excavating and filling

Interlocking brick, block roads, paving

Where Glasgow

When 2004

Building Camstradden Primary School

Total construction works value

£3.4m

Total materials value

£2m

Top Quick Wins

0 10000 20000 30000 40000

Drainage belowground

Plasterboard dry lining/partitions/ceilings

Interlocking brick/Block roads/Pavings

Excavating and filling

Mixing/Casting/Curing in Situ concrete

Rubber/Plastics/Lino/Carpet tiling

Coated macadam/Asphalt roads/Pavings

Recycled Content Value £

Actual (£)Readily achievable (£)

Quick Wins

Who is taking action?

Bristol City Council

Whipps Cross Hospital

Lancashire County Council

Building Schools for the Future (BSF)

Raploch URC

Adopted minimum 10% value requirement

Glasgow City Council

Aberdeen City Council

Dundee City Council

Newcastle City Council

Solihull MBC

Sheffield CC

Who is taking action?

Increasing the use of recycled content

BAA

British Land

Ely Bridge

Worcestershire CC

Yorkshire Forward

Major supermarkets

Major housebuilders - Redrow

Glamorgan Gwent HA

How WRAP can help

WRAP assistance

RC Toolkit

Case studies

Procurement advice

Site waste management

Demolition guidance

Web resources

AggRegain, tools, research reports

Trailblazer projects

Events

Toolkit – data requirements

Material Resource Efficiency in Construction

www.wrap.org.uk/construction

Quick Win & Procurement guidance documents

Housing Quick Wins

Preliminary works

General building

Office & commercial refurbishment

Highways maintenance

Councillor briefing documents

Publications & guidance

Construction procurement template wording:

Design/project brief

Appointment of design team

Supplier pre-qualification and audit

Tender specification (D&B, traditional)

Contract clauses

Construction product listing

Resources for procurement

For further information

Thank you!

www.wrap.org.uk/construction

jim.wiltshire@wrap.org.uk