Integrated Application of Cleaner Production on a University Campus

Abstract

Cleaner production is gaining increased attention worldwide. The objective of the present work is the integrated application of cleaner production on a university campus. A university campus involves several activities including academic and administrative tasks that are carried out along the entire year. Opportunities for efficient use of energy, water, fuels, and other resources, are identified in order to establish the cost-benefit associated with its eventual implementation. Their feasibility evaluation should consider technological, economic, and environmental aspects involved in order to assess potential cost savings and the corresponding payback time. Potential impacts on utility bills can be rather significant and depend on the nature of the cleaner production strategy to be implemented, including best practices, replacement of current equipment and components with more efficient units, as well as adoption of best available technologies. Annual usage of energy, water, fuels, ink, and paper on a university campus was collected. It was found that total annual cost accounted for 1’471,863 US$. Potential annual cost savings were estimated as 267,304 US$. Implementation cost was estimated as 276,200 US$ with an overall payback time of 1.03 years. In addition to that, cleaner production measures for electricity and fuels would lead to a carbon dioxide emissions reduction of 57.27 tons/yr.