Zero Waste Week 2022, takes place from the 5th - 9th of September and Borders College will be supporting the campaign in line with its Sustainability Strategy, which sets out clear targets for reducing waste and increasing recycling/reusing rates to over 80% by 2025.
Zero Waste Week is an opportunity for businesses, householders, schools, colleges, universities and community groups to demonstrate their commitment to minimising waste.
Borders College already has multiple waste reduction measures in place and multiple recycling streams including:
- Removing the purchase of single-use plastics and disposable items such as coffee cups and disposable food containers from their catering outlets.
- Introducing reusable products such as keep cups and reusable food containers.
- Removing plastic cups from all water stations.
- Creating simple recycling stations across the campus located in public areas.
- Repurposing and reusing furniture where possible and repairing items in-house rather than disposing and buying new where possible.
- Disposing of equipment/materials responsibly by ensuring where possible they find new homes or suitable recycling waste streams by breaking down into material parts.
- Reducing the need for paper printouts by using technology and any paper bought is 100% recycled.
The College has also developed multiple recycling streams across all of its campuses which include wood, paper, food, metal, tyres, rubble, batteries, glass and clothing, along with many other materials.
Despite recycling many items, the College’s commitment and drive is to reduce this further to reach its goal of Zero Waste to landfill by 2025.
They have recently embarked on reducing their waste further by reducing what and how products and services are bought. Procurement accounts for a significant proportion of their waste. One example is having recently replaced all of their cleaning products with a single source product bought in a bulk container. Diluted to various strengths for differing uses, this change will save over 21,500 plastic containers, 4100 cardboard boxes, 120 pallets and 120 deliveries over the next five years.
Borders College has multiple working groups active in managing all forms of sustainability. Details of these groups and who to contact, should you wish to get involved, are detailed below.
Waste Management Working Group – rhewi@borderscollege.ac.uk
Travel and Transport Working Group – rhewi@borderscollege.ac.uk
Carbon Management Working Group - rhewi@borderscollege.ac.uk
Procurement Working Group- Akirkness@borderscollege.ac.uk
Curriculum Working Group- Dlowe@borderscollege.ac.uk
Behavioural Change Working Group- Dkerr@borderscollege.ac.uk