In Fall 2024, the “Sustainable Aggies” First Year Aggie Connection, or FYAC, conducted a mini-waste audit of the Segundo residence halls at UC Davis. The results were eye-opening: of the 22.1 pounds of waste audited, less than 25% was actually landfill-destined. Instead, 44% of the waste consisted of recyclable materials, and 32% was compostable.
The University of California, Davis, is the “greenest” campus in the United States for the ninth year in a row, according to the 2024 UI GreenMetric World University Rankings.
Beginning in September 2024, the UC Davis campus community will see a significant shift in the packaging of beverages sold in retail locations as well as vending machines across campus. Approximately 80% of PepsiCo beverages will be packaged in aluminum, glass, recyclable cartons, or other non-plastic containers.
Nearly a decade ago, campus leaders at UC Davis decided to invest in a small team of employees to reduce energy by optimizing building controls and systems. The concept was that UC Davis could fund such a team, if it could curb high utility bills — essentially having the team pay for itself with energy savings.
Eric O’Brien’s new position as director of Sustainability at UC Davis is just the latest chapter in his lifelong story of commitment to sustainability.
by Scout Mata and Katie Hetrick, FOA Communications
Tucked away on the west side of campus, UC Davis’ READ facility receives 20 tons of food waste per day from customers including local grocery stores and our own campus dining commons. With the improvements a recent $4.77M CalRecycle grant provides, the READ facility becomes an important part of UC Davis’ strategy to eliminate the use of fossil fuels from its operations and fight climate change.
by Scout Mata and Katie Hetrick, FOA Communications
Since taking ownership in 2017, UC Davis Facilities Management has dedicated itself to revitalizing the READ facility, working with academic and industry experts to find creative solutions including the development of an ammonia extraction system that processes the ammonia-rich digestate, separating it into nearly ammonia-free digestate and concentrated ammonia.
For the third consecutive year, national environmental leader Practice Greenhealth has named UC Davis Health one of the top 25 hospitals in the country for sustainability. This is the highest honor for hospitals and is based on a rigorous scoring system measuring leadership in sustainability, including greening the operating room, sustainable procurement, green building, energy, water, climate, chemicals, waste, food and transportation.
UC Davis Sustainability is launching an innovative pilot program aimed at reducing waste and promoting sustainability through the reuse of lab coats and goggles. From June 3rd to June 14th, students are encouraged to participate in a campuswide collection initiative.
UC Davis is embarking on a transformative journey to phase out the purchase and use of single-use plastics from our food service establishments and replace them with reusable or locally compostable alternatives.
