Environmental Policy
Bath Spa University is based on two main sites in Bath: the historic parkland campus at Newton Park estate and at Sion Hill in the Lansdown conservation area close to the City centre.
The University has over 1000 staff who share with more than 5,500 students at Bath Spa a strong environmental ethos.
Overall Environmental Objectives
We recognise that our activities have an impact on the environment. Our overall environmental objectives are to ensure that this impact is minimised, that the University grows and develops in a sustainable way and that continuous improvement in environmental performance is embedded into our business model and the culture of the University.
To this end we will:
- Establish and maintain an Environmental Management System (EMS) through EcoCampus and ISO 14001 accreditation in order to ensure that the environmental impact of the University including associated risks is monitored, controlled and minimised, and that we continue to make improvements
- Comply fully with all relevant environmental legislation, regulations and agreements
- Reduce our carbon emissions through our carbon management plan which includes measures to ensure we meet and exceed statutory sector targets
- Promote sustainable modes of transport including walking, travelling by bus, car-sharing and cycling
- Minimise the impact and use of natural resources by reducing water use, preventing pollution, reusing materials, recycling and reducing waste to landfill
- Manage the University's property portfolio in a manner that encourages and maintains biodiversity; this will include adopting sustainable construction practices where possible
- Adopt sustainable purchasing and the use of environmentally sound goods and services
- Engage with other institutions and the wider community to share environmental best practice and demonstrate environmental responsibility
- Promote education for sustainable development in the curriculum to all students
- Promote environmental awareness and responsibility amongst all staff and students through awareness campaigns and training programmes.
Our EMS provides the thrust for this policy, and the human and financial resources required for its implementation are in place. The objectives, targets and procedures set within the EMS will ensure that our policy statements are realised and will also form the basis for the independent audit of performance, enabling us to measure our progress against similar institutions and sector standards.
February 2012
Prof Christina Slade, Vice-Chancellor
EcoCampus
EcoCampus
is a national Environmental Management System (EMS) and award scheme designed
specifically for the higher education sector. The scheme is closely aligned to
ISO 14001, the international EMS standard. The aims of EcoCampus are to assist
institutions in moving towards environmental sustainability through good operational
and management practices.
The scheme is broken down into four phases - Bronze (Planning), Silver (Implementing), Gold (Operating) and Platinum (Checking and Correcting), with the final phase indicating a fully operational, auditable EMS.
BSU has been successful in a recent audit and now holds the Gold award. This is a notable achievement and signifies major progress in BSU's environmental management journey.
As part of the audit we were assessed for our compliance with environmental legislation, pollution prevention, operational competence, progress in meeting our targets, and communication and awareness raising.