Introduction
The University of Pennsylvania has a history of strong environmental programs
and initiatives. The University of Pennsylvania is the number one institutional
recycler in Pennsylvania. The University purchases over 75% of its copy
paper from a recycled grade. However, the University of Pennsylvania has
never cumulatively examined the impacts of its operations on the environment.
My senior design project utilizes a campus environmental audit
as a tool to understand and analyze the environmental effects of Penn.
The goal of the audit is four fold. First, I aim to define, for the first
time, the University of Pennsylvania's environmental system and its impact
on the environment. Second, I intend provide direction on how to minimize
environmental impacts in each audited area(Figure 1). Third, I aim to suggest
methods and means to institutionalize environmental self assessments and
approach managing environmental concerns of Penn's operations. Finally,
I intend to make all the information available on the World Wide Web in
order to facilitate further research and auditing.
The audience of the audit is twofold. First, I am focusing on Penn administrators
and employees by defining environmental impacts and suggesting alternative
approaches. Second, I aim to help students performing extracurricular and
academic research about Penn's environmentally related operations.
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System Definition
The first step in understanding the impacts of Penn on the environment
is to define the system to be examined. My senior design project is structured
with two primary subsections(1):
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Resources and Infrastructure
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Wastes and Hazards
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Resources & Infrastructure focuses on the physical and operating systems
of the University and the usage and demand for products. Waste and Hazards
describes the quantity and composition of waste, emissions, and toxic substances,
their flows through campus and the policies governing their usage.
To conduct the audit, the two subsections are broken down into eight
total subsystems(Figure 2). Each category is to be examined independent
of the medical school.
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Methodology
The Framework
Each subsystem is explored in order to best orient the reader with relevant
material and background. First, a description of the department that familiarizes
the reader with the responsibilities and organization of the department
that manages the subsystem is presented. Second, a summary of the environmental
concepts provides the reader with a background in relevant environmental
material. Third and fourth, the audit questions and answers shows the University's
management approach and its impact on the environment. Fifth, summaries
of programs at other universities describe programs that integrate environmental
issues effectively. Finally, recommendations conclude each section based
upon activities of other universities, the audit results, research, and
interviews with environmental specialists. Recommendations focus on both
structural components, i.e., how the system is organized, and greening
components, i.e., how to reduce the environmental impacts.
The Audit
The audit is conducted using an edited version of the Campus Environmental
Audit Response.(2) The audit consists a standard set
of questions that details:
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The nature of the impacts
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The resources consume or wasted
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Current policies governing the activity
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Relevant regulatory framework
To obtain the answers to these questions, I needed to consider:
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Whom to obtain the information from?
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What do I expect them to know?
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How accessible would the information be?
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Why should I collect this information?
Information is gathered primarily through interviewing employees, administrators,
and faculty and analyzing relevant campus reports.
Environmental Self Assessments And Environmental Management Systems
Once the environmental audit it is complete, it provides an understanding
of the Penn's environmental impacts. However, it also presents an opportunity
to act as a benchmark for further assessments. If Penn can institutionalize
the environmental audit as part of its operations management, the University
will have an opportunity to measure performance and improvement. Therefore,
the environmental self assessments and environmental management systems
section, will focus on:
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The University
of Pennsylvania: An Overview
The University of Pennsylvania has 22,109 students and 4282 associated
and standing faculty. Penn is the largest private employer in the city
of Philadelphia and the fourth largest in Pennsylvania. Total employment,
including faculty and 5,884 employees of the Hospital of the University
of Pennsylvania, is 25,977. The campus spans 260 acres, with 121 buildings
independent of the hospital.
The operations and activities of the University requires four primary
inputs: energy, water, products, and transportation. The outputs of the
University are air emissions, wastewater, transportation, hazardous waste,
radioactive waste, solid waste, and recycling(Figure 4). Each input and
output has a respective environmental impact. The input affects the environment
due to the nature of its production and design. For example, energy production
generally produces CO2, NOx, and SO2. The output, on the other hand, directly
impacts the environment in conjunction with its relevant emissions, disposal
and/or reuse requirements. The total environmental impacts of the University
of Pennsylvania are described by a combination of the inputs and outputs.
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The Management Approach
Penn's Environmentally Related Operations Management(Figure 4) is divided
into an academic division, coordinated by Executive Vice President and
an administrative division, managed the Provost. The division of departments
is then based upon the nature of the services they provides. Environmental,
Health, and Safety(EHS), which reports to the Vice Provost for Research,
primarily supports the University's laboratories. Physical Plant, which
reports to the Vice President for Facilities, is responsible for campus
facilities in the areas of recycling, solid waste, and energy. Purchasing
and Transportation, which reports to the Vice President for Finance and
Business Services respectively, also provide support which are more University
wide than academic.
The academic and administrative divisions of the University are not
independent of each other. EHS and Physical Plant work together in order
to accomplish environmental objectives such as regulatory compliance.
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Back to the Penn Environmental
Group Homepage
1April Smith, Campus Ecology, Living Planet Press, Venice
California, 1990, pg. xiv. 2Watgreen Homepage: http://www.adm.uwaterloo.ca/infowast/watgreen/projects.html.