DOE/ORO/2327 Oak Ridge Reservation Annual Site Environmental ...

Oak Ridge Reservation
(273 million gallons) per year of water usage and associated waste water generation will be eliminated
with an associated cost avoidance of more than $5 million, which includes all cost avoidance associated
with the BGSP.
During the year UT-Battelle expanded the
scope of the recycling program at ORNL with
more than 78% of FY 2009–generated
materials being diverted for recycle or
beneficial use. One successful activity involved
“dumpster dives” (see Fig. 5.11) performed by
the Sustainable Campus Initiative team during
the year to identify viable opportunities for
further reductions in waste streams at ORNL.
This involves detailed hand sorting and
categorization of the contents of dumpsters
from targeted buildings. Based on this effort,
UT-Battelle targeted recycling and/or reduction
of office waste as an area where the diversion of materials from waste streams to beneficial reuse or
recycle programs could result in significant reductions in the volume of waste being sent to landfills or
disposal facilities. To address this waste stream, centralized recycling locations in hallways and common
areas have been replaced by individual containers within offices. Preliminary results indicate this
approach has been successful, and similar efforts in other areas will be undertaken during 2010 to further
reduce sanitary industrial waste at ORNL.
For more information on these and other ORNL conservation and recycling activities, see
http://sustainability-ornl.org.
ORNL Site P2 Awards
• DOE's Environmental Sustainability (EStar) Awards—received for the Sustainable Campus Team
and the Net Zero Building (3156). The EStar Awards recognize exemplary environmental
sustainability and stewardship practices and excellence in pollution prevention across DOE.
• DOE Office of Science Best in Class Award—On December 31, 2009, ORNL received notification
that DOE Office of Science awarded ORNL an Office of Science “Best in Class” Award for
environmental sustainability and recognized three other initiatives with “Noteworthy Practices”
Awards. Best in Class and Noteworthy Practices Awards were received for accomplishments
associated with ORNL’s Net Zero Building (3156), Sustainable Campus Initiative, Information
Technology Green IT Initiative, and Green Fleet Program.
• Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) Tennessee Pollution Prevention
Partnership (TP3) Performer Member Flag—UT-Battelle completed the five-project TP3 plan that
demonstrates a commitment to preventing pollution of air, land, and water while conserving natural
resources.
• Tennessee Chamber of Commerce & Industry Award for Outstanding Achievement in Water Quality
and achievement certificate for environmental excellence for the successful completion of several
environmental activities at ORNL.
5.2.1.5 Implementation and Operation
Structure and Responsibility
The UT-Battelle Environmental Policy (Fig. 5.2) represents the philosophy of UT-Battelle
management for the conduct of research, operations, and other activities at ORNL. A key tenet of the
5-16 Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Fig. 5.11. Pollution prevention.