Babeș-Bolyai University has waste management and recycling policy which sets the guidelines for handling waste in an environmental-friendly was. Thus, in 2020 the Administration Council of the BBU issued decisions (17 642/7.12.2020) regarding the application of certain measures with regards to handling waste within BBU.
The main points of the decisions are:
- Paper and plastic waste will be collected separately for recycling, with appropriate containers provided in each office/secretariat office and UBB building.
- Used batteries will be collected separately in dedicated containers in each UBB building.
- Invitations, addresses, notices, and internal documents that do not require physical archiving will be sent solely electronically, thus significantly minimising the wasteful use of paper.
- Vegetable waste will be collected separately as far as possible in order to produce compost, which will be used to enrich the soils in the ‘Alexandru Borza’ Botanical Garden and other University green spaces.
- Appropriate steps will be taken to reduce the number of animals in bio-bases used for research purposes by using alternative study methods/techniques, thus reducing biological waste and the carbon footprint.
Many of these measures were already undertaken, even if they were not formalized as above. Thus, according to an internal assessment carried out in 2020:
- toxic waste is extensively treated, only accredited disposal services are allowed to collect them, and no one is allowed to dispose of them;
- already more than 50% of inorganic waste is managed and treated;
- more than 50% of organic waste is managed and treated;
- there are several small scales programs running on lower levels (campuses, faculties, student entitites) aiming to reduce waste and to collect them separately.