Sustainability on Campus

At UW- Eau Claire, we are conscious of the impact our actions have. We are dedicated to creating a campus wide commitment that includes recycling, composting, and practicing energy conservation. Sustainability is about working collaboratively to create a campus where everyone thrives. Here is what we are done as a team to make sustainability happen.

Buildings & Grounds

• The University of Wisconsin- Eau Claire has incorporated LED lighting throughout our campus which contributes to our carbon emissions through energy consumption. All exterior lighting and some campus lamps have been switched to LED lighting. LED lighting is one of the most environmentally responsible lighting technologies.
• UW- Eau Claire uses renew green cleaning products that support the health and safety of our campus community. This helps cut toxic cleaning chemical products in favor of a more economical, simplified and environmentally friendly approach.
• We have eliminated coal from campus fuel mix as part of our carbon-neutral campus plan. UW-Eau Claires’ heating plant no longer is burning coal.
• The University of Wisconsin—Eau Claire uses a non-Glyphosate alternative which helps Ground’s workers create time saving efficiencies. Glyphosate is dangerous to land-inhabiting plants, animals and soil microorganisms.

Davies Student Center

The $48.8 million student center replaced the original Davies Center, which was deconstructed and its site incorporated into the large green space of the Central Campus Mall.

• UW-Eau Claire has incorporated composting in the Davies Center and Riverview Café. Composing sits side-by-side with the recycling and trash receptacles. Composting reduces the amount of landfill waste which is a sustainable effort of UWEC. 
• Blugold Catering also uses compostable plates, cups, and dinnerware whenever possible. This helps reduces the amount of waste we throw into our local landfills.
• Blugold Catering features locally grown food whenever possible and financially feasible. Most of our local produce is sourced from Bix Produce located in the Twin Cities. Locally grown food benefits the environment and yields less pollution.
• UW-Eau Claire’s Dinning Services provides vegetarian options which reduces pollution and harmful effects on animals.  
• Davies Center's Level 3 terrace is a vegetated roof that reduces the amount of runoff from the building. The green roof retains rainfall, absorbing much of the rain and allowing the rest to drain much more slowly though the drainage system into Little Niagara Creek.
• Solar panels on the roof of Davies Center reduces the water heating costs by using the sun. Solar panels also contribute to our carbon emissions through energy consumption.
• The plumbing design of Davies Center incorporates strategies that, together, use 20 percent less water than the use baseline calculated for the building. Increasing water efficiency reduces the burden on municipal water supply and wastewater systems.

Community

• Campus Harvest Food Pantry 
• Public Transportation