Sustainability

USU Green Facts

• Hand Dryers 
  Hand dryers reduce paper waste in restrooms and help save trees.
  Every hand dryer in the University Student Union saves 1,900 linear feet of paper per week.
• Waterless Urinals 
  The USU has 40 waterless urinals throughout the facility and saves approximately 330,240 gallons of water a year.
  The use of waterless urinals saves enough water in two years to fill an Olympic-size swimming pool.
• Filtered Water Bottle Refill Stations 
  Filtered refill stations save you money and allow the reuse of water bottles.
  On average 60 million water bottles get thrown away in the United States a day. Help reduce this by reusing your water bottles.
• Natural Light 
  The Sol Center's use of natural light reduces the building's overall energy consumption.
  The Sol Center's natural light design helped the building become 26% more efficient than 2006 LEED standards. LEED is an internationally recognized green building certification system developed by the U.S. Green Building Council.
• Green Carpet Standard 
  The USU has implemented a Green Carpet Standard for all new and replaced carpet.
  Our Green Carpet Standard is 100% recyclable so it does not have to be thrown away in a landfill.
  The carpet is 100% PVC (polyvinyl chloride) free to ensure safety for human health and the environment.
• Motion-Sensor Light Switches 
  Motion-sensor light switches are used throughout the majority of USU facilities to reduce energy consumption when a space is not occupied.
• Drought-Tolerant Plants 
  Through the use of drought-tolerant plants that are native to California, the USU is able to use less irrigation water every year while maintaining an attractive facility.
• Light Emitting Diode (LED) and Compact Fluorescent Light (CFL) Fixtures  
  The use of low-efficiency halogen lighting has been eliminated from the USU facilities with the transition to more efficient LED and compact fluorescent light fixtures.
• USU Computer Lab Print Management 
  The USU Computer Lab has implemented a print management software program to reduce a large amount of paper waste from duplicate or accidental printing.
• Battery Collection Station 
  A battery collection station has been established to properly recycle batteries that are hazardous waste and cannot be thrown into a regular trashcan.
• Running Track and Wood Floors From Recycled Materials 
  The running track and wood floors in the SRC contain a significant amount of recycled content.
• Roof-Mounted Solar Panels 
  The SRC utilizes roof-mounted solar panels to offset total building electricity usage.
• Duplex Printing as Default
  The USU Computer Lab utilizies two-sided printing with the default setting of “duplex mode” on all of its printers.
• SRC Poolside Charging Stations
  Need somewhere to plug in? Power up your electronics at our charging stations conveniently located under the umbrellas at both the Rec Pool and Plaza Pool at the Student Recreation Center of the University Student Union.