Queens College Sustainability Plan

Queens College Sustainability Plan sets goals in each of the seven pillars of sustainability and the steps to be taken to achieve those goals. These seven pillars are comprised of Energy, Water, Transportation, Recycling/Source Reduction, Procurement, Sustainable Nutrition, Education and Outreach.

1. Energy: A sustainable student residence and an addition to Remsen that incorporated energy efficiency measures. They are currently engaged in several studies of their buildings that will provide recommendations for energy efficient retrofits for building upgrades. They are working towards to have a solar project and a green roof. They are also working on a menu of energy savings projects in their energy
audit of their facilities and they plan to implement any that are financially feasible. New
equipment is evaluated in terms of its energy-efficiency. With adequate funding, their goal is to replace all of their outdoor lighting with either LED or induction lighting.

2. Water: They are focused on bathroom retro fits to save water including water-efficient toilet
flushes and sensor activated sink faucets. They have a long-term goal of having some type of “grey
water” project.

3. Transportation: They have Zip Cars, the car sharing vendor, on campus. They will continue to
expand the percentage of our fleet that is either electric or hybrid. They will also create incentives
for the use of alternative transportation, like biking, public transportation, and car pooling

4. Recycling/Source Reduction: They will reduce the total amount of waste produced and expand
the percentage of the waste that is recycled. They will continue to use technology to reduce their use of paper, moving more or their processes and communication online. They will examine the
amount of printing and copying and reduce their consumption. Their dining services will explore composting.

5. Procurement: They are now purchasing paper that has 100% recycled content for copying. They will expand the percentage of products that are “green”. They will continue to use “cradle to grave”
sustainable products, like carpeting that has recycled elements and is recyclable at the end of its
life cycle. They will engage in a mail initiative to reduce the amount of unwanted mail that comes
to the campus.

6. Sustainable Nutrition: They have signed a 10 year contract with Chartwells, their food vendor that
incorporates sustainable practices and goals including using “green” service ware, local sourcing,
and recycling.

7. Education and Outreach: They will continue their education and outreach efforts through a
website, ‘green” events and other means. They will increase student, faculty, and staff
engagement. They will increase the number of courses they offer that have an environmental focus.
Their faculty will continue the important research they are doing on environmental topics.

© 2012, Richard Matthews. All rights reserved.

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