Green Lab

As part of UCCS’ commitment to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and foster a culture of sustainability on campus, the Office of Sustainability partnered with Environmental Health & Safety in 2015 to develop the Green Lab program to evaluate and promote sustainable behavior and efficiency within campus laboratories.

Labs constitute a large portion of the energy used on campus and as such, there are many opportunities to reduce GHG emissions and utility expenses. Furthermore, water conservation, management of chemicals, equipment purchasing, transportation practices, zero waste initiatives and more can all be pursued to achieve a greener campus.

During the first year of operation, the Green Lab program evaluated over 28 campus laboratory spaces. This preliminary evaluation of the Green Lab program found that University laboratory spaces had a wide diversity of energy and water use. The program continues to develop to meet the specific needs of our campus laboratory spaces.

The Green Lab program was developed using information from other Green Lab programs across the country. Sources for the development of our program have been taken from a broad spectrum of academic journals as well as other programs at CU Boulder, UC Davis, UC Berkeley, Princeton University, MIT, and other institutions of higher education. Additionally, the Labs 21 program provided by the International Institute of Sustainable Laboratories (I2SL) has been a significant resource during the development of our program.