Sustainability

St. Ambrose University administration, faculty, staff, alumni, and students act daily to sustain the environment and reduce its carbon footprint. An important part of this effort is a commitment to increase environmentally sustainable practices. Read what the Catholic Coalition on Climate Change has to say about Sustainability.

Current campus initiatives include:

• Library: Double-sided printing; limiting number of free pages printed per student, per semester
• Physical Plant: Biodiesel fueled vehicles; green space relocation; storm water retention tanks holding 45,000 gallons; weatherization of buildings; green cleaning supplies; Energy consumption monitoring and zone controls via computer; LEED certification standard use as guidelines for building projects; purchase products made from recycled materials as well as those following fair trade practices
• Sodexo: Trayless dining (read why this cuts cost and saves water); buying locally-grown food; composting; providing reusable to-go containers thereby eliminating styrofoam.
• Campus (various buildings): Recycling bins in residence halls and offices; low-energy lightbulbs; low-flow showerheads, several buildings constructed with resource conservation practices; automatic light switches; replaced some old windows with energy-efficient windows.

In addition to the above initiatives, conservation practices currently are being conducted in the following areas:

Land Use

Porous pavement, prairie grass, experimenting with slow-growing grass, use storm water for watering, harvest from a community garden

Transportation

Free bus passes and bus stops located close to campus; bike racks; sidewalks in neighborhood to encourage walking to and from campus

Water

Storm water detention tanks capture 45,000 gallons of water at Franklin Hall, Rogalski Center and New Hall; a water retention pond captures 150,000 gallons of water and slowly releases it; irrigation using storm water; low-flow showerheads in residence halls; installed some automatic water faucets.

Contact Us

We welcome anyone's ideas, suggestions or feedback at BeeGreen@sau.edu