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  4. Environmental statement

Environmental statement

We are committed to reducing our environmental impact. Environmental coordinators operate at each Library site to implement environmental improvements, in conjunction with the University's sustainability team.

The Library has a number of sites with a large overall square meterage and long opening hours, so potentially our biggest environmental impacts are:

  1. electricity usage: computers and other equipment
  2. staff travel
  3. electricity usage: lighting
  4. printing/photocopying
  5. electrical waste, especially computers and peripherals.

We aim to make improvements by:

  • making the most efficient use of energy in all areas of our operations
  • reducing energy waste wherever possible
  • reducing the amount of materials we use in doing our work
  • reusing those materials that have outlived their original purpose wherever we can
  • recycling as much as possible the materials that we cannot reuse.

Students and visitors can minimise their environmental impact by:

  • buying a re-usable water bottle (available from the Union). There are water fountains in the Edward Boyle Library (usually opposite the lifts) and in the Brotherton, and for Health Sciences Library users drinking water is available from Worsely Café 7.
  • using the recycling bins. The large green tub bins are for paper. There are smaller bins for glass, plastic, compost or general waste.
  • taking the stairs rather than the lifts, to save energy
  • buying our stylish and environmentally friendly "Sshhh...!" bags from the enquiry desks.

Library staff can minimise their environmental impact by:

  • Making use of the many University schemes to encourage green travel
  • Hibernating or powering down PCs and printers when not in use
  • Using mobile devices and cloud computing for meetings rather than printing emails and papers
  • Turning off lights when leaving offices
  • Using the recycling bins and other schemes
  • Sending off used printer cartridges for recycling
  • Collecting stamps to donate to charity
  • Retaining paper which does not hold any confidential information to be used as scrap paper for the enquiry desks
  • Printing on both sides of paper where possible
  • Encouraging users to download information guides from the Library website rather than printing
  • Refilling and reusing water bottles at mains water fountains.