3R (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle) program for university’s waste

Campus waste recycling process:

Set up garbage and resource recycling bins at fixed locations → Send the staffs to collect waste daily → Transported to the on-campus resource recycling field → Items are reclassified and cleaned up → Resource waste is regularly cleared, transported and sold by resource recycling manufacturers, and non-resource waste is cleared, transported and disposed of by the cleaning team of the local government's Environmental Protection Bureau. 

        National Chiayi University has always adopted the principles of Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle for campus waste management. The implementation plans for Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle are elaborated upon below:

Reduce:  Regarding reduction, the university aims to decrease material consumption at its source. Consequently, plans have been laid out to mandate reduction in food preparation in cafeteria, materials at construction sites, and unnecessary items in administrative processes.

1.Reduction of ingredients based on specific criteria.  (a) The student cafeteria is managed by the Meal Committee. The 

   committee, consisting of faculty members from the Department of Food Science who hold nutritionist licenses and operators of

   the student cafeteria, collaborates to develop healthy and nutritious recipes. Additionally, they tally kitchen waste daily, using the

   data as a basis for subsequent meal preparation.  (b) Shops within the campus do not provide straws and free plastic bags.

2.Reduction in construction materials.  (a) The purpose of this reduction measure is to minimize the construction waste generated

   during building construction and future demolition processes, such as unbalanced earthworks, discarded soil, discarded building

   materials, and dust. These “construction wastes” are capable of harming the surrounding environmental sanitation and human

   health.  (b) The establishment of buildings on campus is based on the principle of reusing old structures.  (c) For earthworks

   between projects, there must be a balanced earthwork design. In line with the specifications for soil and water conservation in

   green buildings, the projects do not use earth sourced from landfill sites. (d) The volume of solid waste generated during

   construction is assessed through “construction automation” and “structural lightweighting”.  (e) Use of recycled building

   materials.   For example, using recycled concrete aggregate or recycled facing bricks to replace blast furnace cement.

3.For the reduction in administrative processes. The following measures are stipulated.  (a) Paperless official documents.  

   (b) Turning off the lights for 30 minutes at noon every day.  (c) Simplification of administrative procedures.  (d) The University's

   procurement regulations mandate green procurement for on-campus supplies. As of 2022, the green procurement rate has

   reached 99.07%.

4.Reducing the use of tap water.  Establishing a rainwater retention system. The collected rainwater is supplied for the

   Department of Aquaculture, Department of Horticulture, and campus plant watering, aiming to reduce the use of tap water. 

   Each building is equipped with a wastewater/greywater recycling and reuse system.

5.Chemical Exchange Platform: The Environmental Protection and Safety Management Center has established a list of chemicals

    used within the campus and a chemical exchange platform. This allows teachers to obtain experimental chemicals already

    available on campus through the platform and reduce the instances of purchasing duplicate chemicals.

Reuse: Reuse is the primary mechanism for the university to reduce waste; therefore, in the plan, the university has set several measures.

 1.No disposable materials.    (a) Encouraging individuals to bring their own reusable food containers, utensils, and cups.  In the

    student cafeteria, bringing your own utensils and cups entitles you to a discount. (b) Bottled water is not provided at meetings

    and activities.  

2.Reuse of  furniture and equipment.  (a) All usable furniture and electronic items within the campus can be released to faculty

   and staff in need through the management platform established by the Asset Management Division.  (b) Every academic year, the

   Vehicle Management Committee collects bicycles discarded within the campus. After refurbishing them, they are made available

   for faculty, staff, and students to claim.  (c) Every academic year, the Extracurricular Activities Division holds a flea market where

   usable items are displayed for sale. All proceeds go to the emergency relief fund.

3.Second-hand Book Circulation Mechanism: A system for the exchange of second-hand books has been established in

   collaboration with off-campus second-hand bookstores. The general public and students can obtain the books and textbooks they

   need from these stores either for free or by purchasing them.

Recycle:  Recycling bins are placed in every building on campus. In conjunction with the curriculum, students are taught the methods and processes of waste sorting and resource recycling, implementing the policy of resource recycling and reuse. 

1.Program for agricultural organic waste.  The National Chiayi University, rooted in its agricultural heritage, has formulated specific

   recycling and reuse strategies for different agricultural wastes. In 2022, we particularly focused on the woodchip substrates used

   in "space bags" for mushroom cultivation and poultry feathers. Through microbial wet decomposition of these wastes, we

   combined their metabolites to produce organic cultivation soil. This soil is subsequently supplied for the nutrient requirements of

   the university's Departments of Agronomy, Horticulture, and Life Agriculture, and also supports the plant cultivation and related

   courses within the campus. This initiative not only reduces environmental pollution but also contributes to the reduction of

   carbon emissions.

2.Program for waste sorting process and resource recycling.  In order to implement resource recycling and waste reduction, the

   university  has formulated the programs of garbage classification and divided general waste into three categories. The first

   category is resource waste including paper and paper boxes (paper containers, aluminum foil packs, and paper tableware),

   plastics (plastic containers, special bottles, plastic bags), metals (iron cans, aluminum cans, other metal products), glass  

   containers (tinted glass, colorless glass), batteries, lighting sources. The second item is food waste and the third item is non-

   resource waste (that is resource waste and non-recyclable waste other than kitchen waste). The specific method is to set up

   waste and resource recycling bins at designated locations in teaching, administrative buildings, department halls and other

   buildings to publicize the distinction between recyclable and non-recyclable waste.  The staffs collect and transport wastes to the

   campus resource recycling site for further classification. Sorted and  resource recycling items are handed over to resource

   recycling manufacturers to be cleared, transported and sold. Then the proceeds from the sales are reused for the expenses

   required for the implementation of waste recycling business. The internal waste is fully and properly removed and the resource

   waste is fully recycled.  In addition, the university promotes the recycling of Electronic Waste and ink-cartridges from printers 

   (the third category). E-waste items are handled separately by the trained technians due to their high concentrations of toxic

   chemicals and heavy metals.  Food waste is handed over to the Chiayi City Environmental Protection Bureau for recycling and

   reuse as compost.

3.The operation plan for “Discarded furniture recycling plant/Creative design studio” . All discarded furnitures or usable wood

   waste will be sent to the “Discarded furniture recycling plant/Creative design studio” on campus. These refurbished furniture

   will be open to faculty and students for adoption or purchase at the second-hand market held every year along with the repaired

   abandoned bicycles.

4.Establishing a water resource recycling and reuse mechanism and system. Reclaimed water and rainwater recovery devices are

   installed in various venues, academic buildings, student activity centers, etc. The wastewater from the treatment plant is treated

   according to regulatory requirements and then recycled for floor cleaning and campus plant watering.

5.Educational promotion. The Environmental Protection and Safty Manegment center of NCYU advocates and promotes waste

   classification and resource fully reuse and recycling and in response to Earth Day, the center holds annually resource recycling

   and promotional material redeem activities.  At the same time, we collaborate with iNaturalist Taiwan for on-campus ecological

   exploration courses.