Sustainability and Waste Management: University of Queensland Report. Executive Summary Waste management is vital in any organisation. Managers should have a waste management plan in place at their respective places of work. The University of Queensland is one of the largest and oldest learning institutions in the state of Australia, producing thousands of graduates every year. The institution also contributes to research and policy development in the country. The report focuses on one main campus of the institution located in St. Lucia. This campus started over 100 years ago. It covers over 114 hectares.
The methodology used in this report mainly consists of interviews, waste area assessment, and waste analysis. A survey was also conducted. The waste management assessment at the institution showed an efficient waste management plan in place. The main waste types produced at this institution include paper, food particles, hazardous waste from the laboratories, and the plastics mainly from the packaging materials.
A private contractor and the local city council do the collection and disposal of these wastes. The general waste is land filled while the rest of the waste is either recycled or incinerated. At the time of the collection of the waste from the bins, the bins are over 50% full, with the general waste bins being 95% full. Analysis of the data obtained from this waste assessment at the institution is provided in the report.
The recommendations from the analysis of waste management at the institution were based on the opportunities available. The institution has a waste minimisation strategy, which involves the reduction of materials for land filling to cut on the greenhouse gas emissions (EPA Information Bulletin, 1993).
The report recommends the creation of a committee at the institution to oversee the waste minimisation strategy, which should be headed by a qualified individual. The bulk of the organic waste can be reduced through inventory management at the catering department with some of the food materials being fed to animals such as pigs (Panikkar, Riley
Sustainability and Waste Management: University of Queensland Report
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