Ozone layer depletion caused by human activities that release ozone-depleting substances (ODS) into the atmosphere has become a global environmental problem. The ODS that causes the most ozone depletion is Chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) which is used in industry and households. Realizing this problem, Universitas Indonesia (UI) is trying to strengthen its role in supporting environmental sustainability through various initiatives to achieve zero waste and zero emissions.
Director of Operations and Facilities Maintenance UI, Dr. Dwi Marta Nurjaya, S.T, M.T., said that currently, UI is focusing on efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions with several initiatives that have been carried out, including sustainable waste management, the 3R program (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle), utilization of Solar Power Plants (PLTS) and water harvesting (use of rainwater), as well as the use of electric vehicle-based transportation.
“UI has established a policy regarding waste management. About 10 years ago, waste management was carried out by centralized managers. However, every faculty is now required to have a Waste Processing Site (TPS) to sort and process waste independently and some of the waste is not processed and sorted because it is electronic waste,” said Jaya.
Waste sorting is carried out by separating electronic waste that is categorized as B3 waste (Hazardous and Toxic Materials). This waste cannot be processed independently and must be handled specifically. Meanwhile, for organic waste, UI has built a processing unit that produces compost from food scraps, dry leaves, and wet leaves.
Not only that, UI also supports programs related to 3R. Each faculty is required to provide a drinking fountain or ready-to-drink drinking water to reduce the use of single-use plastic bottles. One real example is the program to exchange plastic bottles with tumblers that have been carried out at the Faculty of Engineering.
Dr. Nurjaya also mentioned efforts to reduce the carbon footprint, namely by monitoring the amount of carbon dioxide emissions in real-time throughout the faculty. In addition, implementing the principle of energy efficiency requires all buildings to utilize PLTS as a renewable energy source and carry out water conservation to harvest rainwater (water harvesting). These three efforts are part of efforts to save and utilize resources wisely.
With the growth in the number of students now exceeding 50,000, UI is determined to improve parking and transportation management to reduce environmental impacts. “With the increasing number of private vehicle users, we face major challenges in terms of parking and pollution. Therefore, we focus on providing sustainable solutions by strengthening transportation integration through collaboration between UI and Transjakarta which presents electric vehicle-based buses,” said Nurjaya.
