UC Berkeley’s Zero Waste Building ProgramCalifornia Higher Education Sustainability Conference (CHESC), July 10, 2019

Presented by: Izzy Parnell-Wolfe, Zero Waste SpecialistCal Zero Waste, Facilities ServicesUniversity of California, Berkeley

Session Agenda

I. Who is Cal Zero Waste?

II. UC System Zero Waste Policy

III. Zero Waste Building Program Overview

IV.Key Stakeholders

V. Bin Infrastructure

VI.Initial Walkthrough

Session Agenda

I. Custodial Assessments

II. Education & Promotion

III. Implementation

IV. Gathering Metrics

V. Looking Ahead

Cal Zero Waste: Who Are We?

Zero Waste Manager

Operations Supervisor

Operations Coordinator

Truck Drivers

Zero Waste Specialists

Zero Waste Custodians

P/T student staff

Cal Zero Waste

Administration

Facilities Services –

Campus Operations

What is Zero Waste?

• University of California System-wide goal:

Zero Waste by 2020

• The University will achieve zero waste by 2020 at all locations other than health locations. Minimum compliance for zero waste is 90% diversion of municipal solid waste from landfill.

• 90% compliance excludes incineration/burning• Policy began with the idea of only measure what is going to landfill

What is Zero Waste?

• University of California System-wide goal:

Zero Waste by 2020

• The University will reduce per capita total municipal solid waste generation at all locations other than health locations as follows:

• Reduce waste generation per capita to FY2015/16 levels by 2020• Reduce waste generation by 25% per capita from FY2015/16 levels by 2025• Reduce waste generation by 50% per capita from FY2015/16 levels by 2030

Zero Waste Building Program Overview

● Pre-implementation data

● Customer support (assessment,

review/discuss of needs)

● Operational support (coordination)

● Educational training and promotion

● Implementation

● Post-implementation evaluation

Key Stakeholders

• Building Manager

• Custodial Services (Manager, Supervisor, Leads &

Custodian)

• Fire Department

• Zero Waste Staff & Operations Team

• Building Occupants (Students, Staff & Faculty)

Bin Infrastructure

● Walkthrough of facility with building

manager

● Discuss bin placement and needs

● Document bins needing to be

removed, moved, or added

● Coordinate with Custodial Services

to determine feasibility of bin

placement and servicing schedule

● Create bin placement map & get

approval from necessary

stakeholders

Initial Walkthrough

• An inefficient waste system

is a cost of labor and

resources and works

against our zero waste

goal.

Initial Walkthrough

Custodial Assessment

• Assessing custodial staff:

–Workload

–Service Frequencies

–Efficiency

–Ergonomics

• Gathering metrics on volume

of materials

Education and Promotion

• Encourage folks to rethink

which items are purchased for

the building

• Place emphasis on products

that focus on waste reduction,

are made of recycled content &

are recyclable/compostable

Education and Promotion

Implementation

• Staggered over the course of 1-5 days (pending on the building’s size)

• Roll-out completed by Cal Zero Waste’s operations team

- Bins are delivered & removed & re-labeled

- Proper signage is delivered & installed

• Messaging provided in conjunction with roll-out

- Banners

- Display & Bulletin Board Signs

- Mini Bin Flyers

Gathering Metrics

Gathering Metrics

Gathering Metrics

Looking Ahead

• Finish campus-wide roll-out

• Certify additional buildings

to be TRUE Zero Waste

certified

• Institutionalize zero waste

into Facilities Services

• Zero Waste 2020 & Beyond

Thank you!

Izzy Parnell-Wolfe

Izzy.parnell-wolfe@Berkeley.edu

zerowaste.berkeley.edu

510-642-3759

Cal Zero Waste

Facilities Services – Campus Operations

University of California, Berkeley