Staying Green

The university and its communities are involved in a wide variety of activities that support recycling and sustainability.

Category Brief Description The Resource
Auctions The Indianapolis campus sponsors quarterly auctions to sell retired property of the university. IUPUI Surplus Property
Recycling Committee Environmental Health & Safety has established a Recycling Committee on the Indianapolis campus. Select the link in the resource column to view details about this committee. IUPUI Recycling Committee
Redistribution The Bloomington and Indianapolis campuses have created mail lists to sanction and encourage the circulation of information related to available resource items within the University. It also allows a department to reach others by posting their needs for equipment and materials. Any University employee may subscribe to these lists, you must be a member of this list before a message can be posted. Select the appropriate link to subscribe or unsubscribe to the lists.
Surplus Property & Stores

Bloomington Surplus Stores operates a retail stores that sell retired property of the university to the public.

IUPUI Surplus Property operates an “Open House” every Thursday from 1pm-3pm that is open to the University community to shop for redistribution of property. Alternate times are by appointment only.

Select the links in the resource column to view details about the operating hours.

Bloomington Surplus Stores
IUPUI Surplus Property
Sustainability Task Force

On February 2, 2007 Terry Clapacs, the IU Vice President for Administration, announced Indiana University it is creating a task force on sustainability.

The 16-person sustainability task force , co-chaired by Michael Hamburger, a Professor of Geological Sciences, and Paul Sullivan, an Assistant Vice President, will help the university develop long-term policies and practices on sustainability, focusing attention on energy efficiency, alternative transportation, recycling and "green" building design. The task force will also include faculty, staff and students.

Plans for the task force began in October 2006, when members of the Bloomington Professional Council, organized by Ben Brabson, an Emeritus Physics Professor, wrote to interim Provost Michael McRobbie, suggesting a sustainability task force. They referred to IU's leadership in environmental education, including its School of Public and Environmental Affairs, and its creation of degree programs in environmental science and human biology.

The Task Force group will try to bridge the gap between academic research and day-to-day practice.

Sustainability is defined by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as the effort to obtain an improved quality of life by balancing a growing economy, protecting the environment and being socially responsible, according to the EPA's Web site.    

By summer 2007, the task force should have a fix on what kind of permanent organization IU could have.    

Information collected from news articles in Herald Times.      

 
Tox-Away Day The Indianapolis campus sponsors a drop off city for the City of Indianapolis' Tox-Away Day.
Waste Management at IU
  • Computers - Surplus Stores sells 90% of IU's old computers to the general public. Those that do not sell are sold to Heritage Environmental on a per pound basis. Heritage recycles these computers back into the market.
  • Chemicals - All research institutions generate hazardous waste, Indiana University is no exception. The health of workers and the community is ensured by the proper handling and disposal of this waste through the Office of Environmental, Health & Safety.
  • End of Year Collection - In certain residence halls on the Bloomington Campus, students may donate material and goods that they would have otherwise thrown away at the end of the year. After all materials and goods are collected, Back Street Mission will collect it. Additionally, any food products collected will be donated to Hoosier Hills Food Bank.
  • Batteries - The Residential Program and Services (RPS), Indiana Memorial Union (IMU), and Building Services Division all recycle batteries on the Bloomington Campus. RPS battery recycling began this fall with visible containers to capture batteries. The IMU collects and recycles batteries at the Custodial Office. The Building Services Division collects D size batteries or smaller household batteries in battery containers located by loading docks.
  • Refrigerators & Freezers - The Utilities Division on the Bloomington Campus currently uses R-123 refrigerant for its seven chillers, which is less toxic than the previous refrigerant that was used, although there is some capacity reduction that has been associated with switching to R-123.
  • Bloomington Power Plant Remodeling - In summer of 2007, the Utilities Division will shutdown two of its coal boilers and will replace them with a natural gas boiler, which has an oil backup. Additionally, in the summer of 2008 the three remaining coal boilers will have backhouse (filters) which will collect ash of particle matter-10.0 or larger. Before the ash hits the backhouse, dry hydrated lime and carbon will be injected to stick to any sulfur dioxide, hydrogen chloride, or mercury, so that it collects in the backhouse. The ash that is collected will be sent back to the mine to be disposed off. All of this is being done to comply with Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations.
  • Occupancy Sensors - By late spring 2007, up to two residence halls on the Bloomington Campus, Teter and Wright Quad, will install motion sensors in the lounge areas to conserve energy usage while still providing a safe environment for students .
  • Go Green Challenge - The Go Green challenge waste reduction project began on the Bloomington Campus during the fall 2005 semester. Green bottles are sold at the IU Bookstores for $5.00 and may be refilled in any RPS food outlet for 35 cents. Refills are also available at 2 other Bloomington location - Dagwoods and The Den. Using this bottle eliminates the waste produced by cold cups.