News
University of Wales Newport celebrates environmental excellence
12 February 2010
University of Wales, Newport has been declared an outstanding study in sustainability today after winning a prestigious environmental award.
The university is celebrating after being awards the Innovation Award at the Wales Public Sector Waste and Sustainability Awards for it's unique approach to waste reduction.
Judges selected the university for its strong commitment to sustainability and for the significant and original steps it has taken towards improving its environmental performance.
The university is one of the first in the UK to create its own bio-diesel project - producing its own bio-diesel from waste oil generated on site and using the fuel in their vehicles.
In the last three years the university has recycled 5200 litres of waste vegetable oil and reduced emissions by 85% to approximately 12 tonnes of carbon dioxide per annum.
University of Wales, Newport Environmental Officer, Matthew Bellamy said "When we first started producing our own bio-diesel is was seen as ambitious by some but we were confident that it was a project worth doing. The results have been staggering both environmentally and financially. Winning this award is further proof that all our hard work has been worthwhile".
The awards - which form part of the Wales Public Sector Waste Minimisation Campaign (PSWMC), which is funded by the Welsh Assembly Government - are the first of their kind in the UK and in Europe.
Ann Stevenson, Envirowise Public Sector programme manager said " These awards enable us to recognise and reward those organisations in the Welsh public sector that are truly commited to resource efficiency and reducing waste. As part of the judging process we have visited a wide cross section of organisations and have been very impressed by the efforts we have seen".
Ann added "University of Wales Newport is a great example of how the public sector can make cost savings especially during this difficult economic climate".
The conference and awards were held at the Millennium Stadium and were an opportunity for delegates to discuss ways of developing partnerships to achieve sustainable waste reductions and how to access innovation in the context of sustainability and resource efficiency in the public sector.
