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Colleges and Universities
Colleges and Universities Links
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Contact
Shannon Kenny (kenny.shannon@epa.gov)
National Colleges and Universities Sector Point-of-Contact
(202) 566-2964
Upcoming Event
2nd Annual Smart and Sustainable Campuses Conference
On April 18-19, 2007, EPA will join with the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE); the Association of Higher Education Facilities Officers (APPA); the Campus Safety, Health, and Environmental Management Association (CSHEMA); the Campus Consortium for Environmental Excellence (C2E2); the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO); the Society for College and University Planning
(SCUP), and the University of Maryland at College Park, Maryland to deliver a comprehensive symposium on smart growth and sustainable practices that serves the economy, the community, and the environment. Sessions and workshops will be offered in the areas of campus planning, engaging the campus in sustainability, facility construction and operations, and assessment and measurement. A call for presentations 
is open until January 10, 2007. For Corporate Opportunities, please visit NACUBO's Web site .
Working with the Industry
The Sector Strategies Program works collaboratively with 12 sectors to improve environmental performance while reducing regulatory burden and providing an expert staff liaison for each sector in the program. The program is part of the National Center for Environmental Innovation at U.S. EPA's Office of Policy, Economics and Innovations (OPEI).
On May 1, 2003, the Colleges and Universities sector was selected to become one of eight new sector partners in the Sector Strategies Program. This partnership is an exciting opportunity for U.S. EPA and colleges and universities to work together to achieve sector-wide environmental gains through innovative actions. The Sector Strategies national liaison works with six College and University national organizations to develop sector-specific approaches to assist colleges and universities in advancing the use of environmental management systems, reducing regulatory performance barriers, and measuring environmental progress.
Coordinating committee
Six organizations have partnered with the U.S. EPA in the Colleges and Universities Sector program. Each partner has designated a sector contact. The sector contacts serve as the Coordinating Committee, with the Sector Strategies liaison and other EPA staff as technical advisors. The current committee members are:
- Bruce Backus (Chair), Washington University in St. Louis
- Shelley Steinbach, American Council on Education
- Lander Medlin, APPA: The Association of Higher Education Facilities Officers
- Peter Schneider, Campus Consortium for Environmental Excellence
- Cheri Hildreth, Campus Safety Health and Environmental Management Association
- Emmett Barkley, Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI)
- Anne Gross, National Association of College and University Business Officers
The role of the Coordinating Committee is to provide leadership to the sector, to assist in the development of the sector's strategic plan, set sector goals, and support the work of the sector.
Work Groups
On November 19, 2003, the Coordinating Committee met in Washington, D.C., and formed three work groups to tailor efforts on the priority areas of the sector initiative: Environmental Management Systems (EMSs), Performance Measurement, and Regulatory Innovations. The work groups were formed to reflect the diverse nature of the Colleges and Universities Sector. Participating members are from nonprofit groups and colleges and universities of all sizes, both public and independent, with widespread geographic representation. The Sector Strategies liaison and other EPA staff serve as technical advisors to the work groups as well as the Coordinating Committee. Since December 2003, all three work groups have been holding regular conference calls. Complete roster of the work group members (Word) (2 pp, 23kb).
Three priority areas
The EMS Work Group and Sustainability Subcommittee
Harvest Collier, University of Missouri Rolla (Chair)
EMSs represent a unique opportunity for colleges and universities to systematically manage their environmental impacts and future goals. The EMS Workgroup developed a strategy to deliver EMS outreach tools, training resources, and support to promote the development of EMS on college and university campuses. The Group is focusing on strategies to address (A) colleges and universities with no previous consideration of implementing an EMS; (B) those that have made EMS considerations, but require assistance; and (C) those that have already begun the EMS development and implementation process but could benefit from specific and more quantitative EMS strategies.
Workgroup members have recently developed two documents: (1) A letter
to college and university presidents/chancellors (PDF) (2 pp, 100kb, About PDF) that
promotes the implementation of EMSs and encourages university presidents/chancellors to take actions to promote environmental
stewardship within their organizations; and (2) A one-page business case, "Fact
Sheet for Senior Administrators" .
This document was developed to raise awareness about the benefits of an EMS, and to share testimonials from universities
that have realized many of these benefits.
In addition, the EMS work group has recently established a national website designed to assist a wide range of colleges and universities with the planning and implementation phases of EMS development. Please visit http://CampusEMS.org/ to learn more about EMSs for Colleges and Universities.
The Colleges and Universities Sector Work Group has developed a series of five case studies that demonstrate how universities of different sizes and locations have implemented EMS on campus.
Each case study demonstrates how the university was introduced to EMS, its implementation steps, benefits resulting from the system, and internal and external communications surrounding the system. In addition, each case study outlines lessons learned from EMS implementation and next steps.
Choose from the case studies listed below, available in PDF format, to learn more about how an EMS can work on campus. Case studies can also be found at http://www.c2e2.org/ems/casestudies.htm .
University of Missouri Rolla
University of Massachusetts Lowell
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
University of South Carolina
University of Michigan
Washington State University
For more information on this group, contact Harvest Collier.
Existing Resources for EMS Development at Colleges and Universities:
Region 1
(New England) EMS Implementation Guide: Region 1 has been at the forefront of the partnership with colleges and universities. The New England Region's website has a number of valuable resources for colleges and universities including this EMS Guide.
C2E2 Self Assessment Checklist :
The Campus Consortium for Environmental Excellence has established this resource to assist campuses begin the process of developing of an EMS.
The U.S Environmental Protection Agency
EMS page provides general information about EMSs, reasons to develop an EMS, and ways to get assistance. You can also search the National
Database for Technical Assistance Providers.
Sustainability Subcommittee
David Drummond, University of Wisconsin-Madison (Chair)
The Sustainability Subcommittee was tasked to develop a sustainability framework specifically for colleges and universities and translate the framework into guidance.
For more information on this subcommittee, contact David Drummond at DDRUMMOND@fpm.wisc.edu.
Performance Measurement Work Group
Andrea George, Vanderbilt University (Chair)
The College and University Sector's Performance Measurement Workgroup developed an on-line tool that allows colleges and universities to collect and analyze data on their campus' environmental impacts. The tool gathers four years of data on energy use, hazardous waste, solid waste/recycling, and water consumption. Schools can use the tool to identify and analyze trends in their data in an easy-to-use format.
The tool also allows colleges and universities to track and benchmark their environmental indicators against aggregated data from other schools of similar size and type. School names are kept confidential. All colleges and universities are invited to input data and provide suggestions for improvement of the tool.
Visit the Colleges and Universities Self Tracking Tool to learn more and/or input data at http://www.c2e2.org/cgi-admin/navigate.cgi .
For more information on this group, contact Andrea George (andrea.george@vanderbilt.edu).
Examples of colleges and universities currently measuring their environmental footprint:
Case
study on environmental performance reporting from the Best Management
Practices Catalog (PDF) (5 pp, 161kb, About PDF): The
Campus Consortium for Environmental Excellence developed this environmental Best Management
Practices (BMP) Catalog for colleges and universities through a grant
from the U.S. EPA. This case study describes the reporting approaches
used by the University of Vermont, the University of North Carolina,
and Yale University. It also provides resources for colleges and universities
that are interested in reporting environmental performance on their
campuses.
- The University of Vermont's Environmental Report Card
- UNC Chapel Hill Campus Sustainability Report 2003 (PDF) (28 pp, 4.4MB, About
PDF)
- Sustainability Assessment and Reporting for the University of Michigan's Ann Arbor Campus (PDF) (413 pp, 1.7MB, About
PDF)
- University of Florida Sustainability Indicators Report
- Pennsylvania State University Indicators Report 2000 (PDF) (108 pp, 1.1MB, About
PDF)
- The University of Central Florida
- Bowdoin College Environmental Impact Audit 2000 (PDF) (74 pp, 2.4 MB, About
PDF)
- Tufts University Green House Gas Emissions Inventory for 1990-1998 (PDF) (17 pp, 64kb, About
PDF)
- University of California Berkeley Sustainability Assessment
Regulatory Innovation Work Group
Bill Diesslin, Iowa State University (Chair)
Proposed Laboratory Rule for Colleges and Universities: On May 12, 2006, the EPA Administrator signed the Standards Applicable to Generators of Hazardous Waste; Subpart K; Standards Applicable to Academic Laboratories proposal. This rule proposes an alternate set of regulations that are tailored to the unique environment of academic laboratories.
The Agency is requesting comments on this proposal. Comments will be accepted for 90 days following the proposed rule's publication in the Federal Register. To access the docket please visit www.regulations.gov and enter the following docket number EPA-HQ-2003-0012. More information is available on the web at: http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/osw/specials/labwaste/index.html .
For more information on this group, contact Bill Diesslin.
The Office of Solid Waste's Federal Register Notice announced the public stakeholder meeting held in June of 2003. The meeting provided a forum for discussion of hazardous waste management in research and/or academic labs.
To view position statements from our Colleges and Universities Sector
Partners, please visit the Campus Safety
Health and Environmental Management Association
and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute
websites.
Annual Colleges and Universities Sector Meetings
Third Annual Meeting: CSHEMA arranged for the Disneyland hotel in Anaheim, CA to host the annual meeting of the sector on July 20th, 2006. More information about the hotel and CSHEMA conference (http://www.cshema2006.org/index.asp) .
Second Annual Meeting: The Coordinating Committee and the three work groups held the Sector's second in-person meeting on July 21, 2005, in Philadelphia after the Annual Campus Safety Health and Environmental Management Association Conference. The group discussed membership for all groups, inclusion of a group to focus sustainability issues for colleges and universities, the promotion of tools, and potential funding to help support workgroup initiatives.
First Annual Meeting: The three work groups and the Coordinating Committee held the Sector's first in-person meeting on July 8, 2004, in Chicago after the Annual Campus Safety Health and Environmental Management Association Conference. Each workgroup provided a brief overview of their goals and objectives and also provided the status of their activities.
Links
Existing resources for the colleges and university community
Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) : AASHE is a membership-based association of colleges and universities working to advance sustainability in higher education in the U.S. and Canada. Their mission is to promote sustainability in all sectors of higher education - from governance and operations to curriculum and outreach - through education, communication, research and professional development.
Environmental Virtual Campus : The Environmental Virtual Campus (EVC) on C2E2's website was conceived by MIT and the U.S. EPA. It helps colleges and universities understand how to achieve compliance through a unique, interactive Web site demonstrating environmental regulatory requirements for a typical research university.
Environmental Compliance Assistance Guide for Colleges and Universities (PDF) (1 pp, 496kb, About
PDF) :
This book is a joint publication from the Association of Higher Education Facilities Officers (APPA) and The Campus Safety, Health and Environmental Management Association (CSHEMA). The guide provides colleges and universities with a basic understanding of the various obligations environmental law imposes on colleges and university campuses. It also assists schools in developing compliance plans for their campuses.
Higher Education Associations Sustainability Consortium (HEASC) : HEASC is an informal network of higher education associations with a commitment to advancing education for a sustainable future, both within their constituencies and within the system of higher education itself. HEASC was formed in 2006 with the purpose of creating a forum for member HEA's to support each other's sustainability programming by meeting on a regular basis to share information and exchange ideas, and engaging in joint projects as appropriate to each organization's mission. Second Nature coordinates the network, and the National Association for College and University Business Officers (NACUBO) serves as fiscal agent.
National Wildlife Federation's Campus Ecology Program : The program aims to transform college campuses into models of sustainability and train future environmental leaders, all the while ensuring a strong future for America's environmental movement.
University Leaders for Sustainable Development : University Leaders for a Sustainable Future (ULSF) assists colleges and universities in making sustainability an integral part of curriculum, research, operations and outreach.
Other U.S. EPA links
Region 1 (New England) college and university compliance assistance site, which provides a range of useful information to assist colleges and universities.
The New England Universities Laboratories' Project XL project, or "Lab XL" is a pilot project that is currently testing a flexible, performance-based system for management of lab wastes. The pilot is being implemented and evaluated at three schools: Boston College, University of Massachusetts Boston, and the University of Vermont.
Region 2 (NJ, NY) website for compliance assistance for colleges and universities.
Region 3 (Mid-Atlantic) compliance information for colleges and universities.
EPA Voluntary Programs for Colleges and Universities
| Voluntary Program | Description | No. of Participating Institutions |
|---|---|---|
| Best Workplaces for Commuters Connie Ruth Tel: 734-214-4815 Email: ruth.connie@epa.gov |
Encourages employers to implement traffic reducing commuter benefits (e.g. significant level of tax-free transit passes, vanpool benefits, telecommuting) as part of a comprehensive commuter benefits package. | 63 |
| Energy Star - Higher Education Laura Helmke Tel: 202-343-9207 Email: helmke.laura@epa.gov |
Maximizes energy efficiency in commercial, industrial, and residential settings by promoting new building and product design and practices. 1-888-STAR-YES | 142 |
| Plug-In To eCycling Shayla Workman Tel: 703-308-8659 Email: workman.shayla@epa.gov |
Increases the number of safe, convenient opportunities Americans have to recycle unwanted electronics and to increase the public's awareness of the need to recycle these products. | |
| WasteWise - Colleges & Universities Michael Scozzafava Tel: 703-308-6114 Email: scozzafava.michaele@epa.gov |
Promotes cost savings and efficiency through waste prevention, recycling, and buying/manufacturing recycled content products. | 93 |
| Combined Heat and Power Tom Frankiewicz Tel: 202-343-9794 Email: frankiewicz.thomas@epa.gov |
Reduces the environmental impact of power generation by fostering the use of cost-effective CHP | 22 |
| Green Power Partnership James Critchfield Tel: 202-343-9442 Email: critchfield.james@epa.gov |
Throughout 2006, EPA's Green Power Partnership will track and recognize the collegiate athletic conferences with the highest combined green power purchases in the nation. The Green Power Challenge is open to all U.S. colleges, universities, and conferences. To join the Partnership, visit the Join Us page of this Web site. | 113 |
| Labs 21 Dan Amon Tel: 202-564-7509 E-mail: amon.dan@epa.gov |
Helps new and retrofitted laboratories cut their energy costs and reduce environmental damage. | 17 |
| Hospitals for a Healthy Environment Chen Wen Tel: 202-564-8849 Email: wen.chen@epa.gov |
Educates health care professionals about pollution prevention opportunities in hospitals and health care systems. | 45 |
| Five Star Restoration Program
Myra Price Tel: 202-566-1225 Email: price.myra@epa.gov |
Provides modest financial assistance on a competitive basis to support community-based wetland, riparian, and coastal habitat restoration projects that build diverse partnerships and foster local natural resource stewardship through education, outreach, and training activities. | 13 |
| National Environmental Performance Track
Julie Spyres Tel: 202-566-2885 Email: spyres.julie@epa.gov |
Encourages top environmental performance among participating U.S. facilities of all types, sizes, and complexity, public and private, which go beyond compliance with regulatory requirements to achieve environmental excellence. | 2 |
| Smart Growth Network
Carlton Eley Tel: 202-566-2841 Email: eley.carlton@epa.gov |
Supports smart growth principles, facilitates the sharing of best practices and acts as a catalyst for implementation of ideas in reference to built projects, policies and plans, small communities, and equitable development | |
| People, Prosperity, and the Planet Awards Julie Zimmerman Tel: 202-343-9689 Email: zimmerman.julie@epa.gov |
P3 is a partnership between the public and private sectors to achieve economic prosperity while protecting the natural systems of the planet and providing a higher quality of life. The P3 competition and awards provide grants to teams of college students to research, develop, and design sustainable solutions to environmental challenges. P3 highlights people, prosperity, and the planet - the three pillars of sustainability - as the next step beyond P2 or pollution prevention. | |
| Clean School Bus USA
Janet Cohen Tel: 734-214-4577 Email: cohen.janet@epa.gov |
Provides the cleanest possible transportation to this generation of school children by 1) eliminating unnecessary school bus idling; 2) retrofitting 1991 and later school buses with advanced emission control technology; and 3) replacing the oldest school buses (1990 and earlier) with new ones. | |
| GreenScapes Jean Schwab Tel: 703-308-8669 Email: schwab.jean@epa.gov |
Reduces, reuses, and recycles waste materials in large-scale landscaping by providing cost-efficient and environmentally-friendly solutions that conserve natural resources and energy. | 3 |
| Diesel Retrofit National Clean Diesel Campaign Jim Blubaugh Tel: 202-343-9244 Email: blubaugh.jim@epa.gov |
Improve the emissions performance of existing diesel vehicles and equipment by encouraging the use of newer technology on their engines. | |
| Lawns and the Environment Nancy Nelson Tel: 801-466-3600 Email: nnelsoncrm@msn.com |
Develops consensus-based guidelines for responsible lawn and landscaping practices, and educates and encourages the public to adopt them. | |
| National Partnership for Environmental Priorities
Newman Smith Tel: 703-308-8871 Email: smith.newman@epa.gov |
Encourage, through recognition, networking, and case example distribution, the minimization of hazardous and industrial wastes, particularly those waste streams containing one or more of the 31 priority chemicals. | 2 |
| Pesticide Environmental Stewardship Program
Stephen Morrill Tel: 703-308-8319 Email: morrill.stephen@epa.gov |
Reduces the health and environmental risks associated with pesticide use and implement pollution prevention strategies. | 6 |
| Green Chemistry Richard Engler Tel: 202-564-8587 Email: engler.richard@epa.gov |
Promotes the research, development, and implementation of innovative chemical technologies that accomplish pollution prevention in a scientifically sound and cost-effective manner. | 10 |
| Carpet America Recovery Effort John Glenn Tel: 703-308-0215 Email: glenn.john@epa.gov |
Prevents carpet from burdening landfills and focuses on developing carpet reclamation and recycling methods. | |
| Green Engineering Nhan Nguyen Tel: 202-564-8526 Email: nguyen.nhan@epa.gov |
Design, commercialization, and use of processes and products, which are feasible and economical while minimizing 1) generation of pollution at the source and 2) risk to human health and the environment. |