Waste management
Waste Management
A study carried out in 2022 on waste management within the EPFL Innovation Park revealed that only 30% of waste is recycled.This represents considerable potential for improving sorting practices and reducing the overall amount of waste. The EPFL Innovation Park, through its sustainable development policy, is committed to recycling at least 65% of the waste generated on the EPFL Innovation Parksite by 2025. To achieve this target, based on the Sustainable DevelopmentGoals (SDGs 12,13), EPFL Innovation Park is deploying various key actions andawareness-raising tools that will enable everyone on site to act more responsibly on a daily basis.
ECOPOINTS IN COMMON AREAS
After an initial test phase in Building M (St Sulpice), from April 15th 2024 centralised collection and sorting points will be installed in the common areas of buildings A,B,C,D, L,N with the aim of recovering recyclable materials and reducing the volume of incinerable waste.
Each ecopoint will collect andsort many types of waste: PET, aluminium, paper, glass, cans, tinplate/steel containers, batteries, coffee/tea capsules and other (incinerable) waste.
The layout of these different ecopoints has been studied by the infrastructure department and adjustments maybe made if necessary.
EPFL INNOVATION PARK BIN BAGS
In order to harmonize Park practices with the cantonal system (taxed bin bags) and to encourage companies of the Park and their employees to improve the sorting of their waste, EPFL Innovation Park has decided to change its policy on bin bags.
Effective September 1st 2024, newbin bags labelled “Fondation EPFL Innovation Park” will be taxed, according to cantonal rates. Order and purchase will be available at the EPFL Innovation Park front desk, in building C, from June 1st 2024. Only bin bags labelled "Fondation EPFL Innovation Park" will be accepted in the Park's containers.
More information on the ordering and paymentprocedure will be provided at a later date.
STOP PUB
To cut on the quantity of paper advertising, STOP PUB stickers will be systematically affixed to all letter boxes. The companies willing to continue receiving such advertising can get in touch with the maintenance team: maintenance@epfl-innovationpark.ch
AWARENESS TOOLS
An Eco-gestures Guide has been created to set out good practice in waste management and release a map of all collection points. This guide is available here and its template is also ready tobe used from the tenant portal for companies willing to add their logo and including it in their processes.
The EPFL Innovation Park has initiated a Waste Management Workgroup with volunteer companies.
One of the results of this group was the definition of a waste management excel tool (also available in the Template section of the Portal). This tool enables companies to map all their internal waste flows in a pragmatic way, helping them to prioritize their waste reduction actions.
Find out the ambition of the Waste Management Workgroup, the portraits and advice of entrepreneurs committed to the subject.
Here the full interviews of
- AC Immune - Jean-Fabien Monin : Measure to manage and reduce
- CFS Engineering – Jan VOS : Whatever the size of your business, every gesture counts
- La Nanosphère – Manon Bricod : Working with your supplier to recycle waste
- World Connect - Nicolas Aubert : Best practices to reduce IT waste
