Eco-friendly Campus

中国体育彩票app下载 Academy of Higher Education (MAHE), 中国体育彩票app下载 is an ISO 9001:2015, 14001:2015 & 50001: 2018 certified campus, following a series of voluntary ISO standards on Quality and Environmental and Energy Management Systems. The Environment and Energy Policy is our guiding document that enables the University to achieve continual improvement over time.

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Environment and Energy Policy

中国体育彩票app下载 Academy of Higher Education endeavours to promote community welfare, environmental protection and efficient energy use to a level of performance that moves “beyond compliance”. Striving to set a benchmark on a National and 中国体育彩票app下载 level for education, healthcare, environment and energy management. MAHE is committed to cleaner and greener campuses. To realize this vision, the University commits to:

• Institutionalize best practices, comply with applicable laws, regulations, and other recognized requirements related to environment and energy use and where practicable exceed them.
• Preventing pollution by continually monitoring and improving its environmental and energy performance by provision of resources to achieve set objectives and targets.
• Establish and maintain management systems to improve energy performance and to minimize harmful effects on environment, human health and safety.
• Promote use of clean, safe and energy efficient technologies in order to utilize natural resources efficiently.
• Encourage transparency and communication of its commitment to sustainable development, simultaneously increasing awareness amongst its stakeholders as well as the community at large.
• Foster education, research and information exchange on energy and environmental development to move toward global sustainability.

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Environmental best practices within MAHE campus

We work within the framework of the Energy & Environment Policy and consider the environment as a ‘living’ entity that we sustain and protect even as we go about our daily activities.

So, what are the concrete steps we need to take to actually make this Policy work on the ground in MAHE?

?Key focus areas

• Waste management
• Water management
• Energy management
• Air quality, Green cover and green transportation

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Solid waste management

• Domestic Waste: This is collected from homes, hostels and residential facilities on the campus.
• Garden waste: This includes trimmed away branches, dried leaves, and all manner of garden waste – used in gardens
• Wet waste: from residences, cafeterias and eating joints is composted.
• Paper, metals, plastics and glass are recycled by giving them to approved scrap vendors.
• Biomedical waste: This is generated in the hospital and nursing facilities within the campus and is handled as per the Biomedical Waste Rules.
• Hazardous waste: The major component in this category is generated out of the maintenance activity of vehicles & DG Sets – disposed to Authorized recyclers. Thermocol generated on campus is recylced
• E-waste: including desktop computers and accessories, compact fluorescent lights, printer cartridges are collected through separate waste streams and disposed to Authorized recyclers

Biomedical waste is segregated at source in a strictly-implemented regimen, using color coded bins. Individual units send their biomedical waste to a central unit from where Authorized agencies pick it up at regular intervals. They ensure the waste is treated and disposed of in a safe manner. Education and training form an important part of the effective implementation of disposal processes; they are also a critical indicator, not only from the environmental point of view but also from the standpoint of employee and patient safety.?

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Waste water management

For management of our water resources, we scrupulously adhere to the 3 R’s: Reduce, Recycle, Reuse. Three sewage plants set up and maintained by MAHE treat the waste water generated in the campus. These have a combined capacity to treat 6,500 cubic meters per day. Treated water from these plants are fully utilized for gardening and arboriculture. In addition a sullage treatment plant of 330 cubic meters per day capacity, treats grey water from the treatment plant which is re-circulated to the flush system in few hostel blocks.

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Rainwater harvesting

Rainwater collected from roof tops connected to existing down-takes leading to a common header flows through a filter. The filtered water is then led to a nearby sump and then piped for domestic use. This scheme adopted covers a catchment area of 27, 250 square meters. For recharging dry bore wells, a pit is excavated around the bore well and a filter medium is filled into the pit. Storm water drains and roof top rainwater pipes are diverted into this pit. The water gets filtered and recharges the bore well. This has been adopted in 11 locations around the campus leading to increase in water table and self-sufficiency during water stressed periods. Recently an artificial pond has been created on campus to urther aid in ground water penetration.

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Air quality

The air we breathe in the campus is clear and that is the way we like it. This is how we do it,
we ensure the emissions from diesel generators are tested at regular intervals to ensure conformity to environmental limits. Vehicle emissions are kept in check. Introduction Of fleet of electric vehicles has further reduced our carbon emissions.

Trees and shrubs are the ‘environmental lungs’ of the campus. These lungs soak up harmful carbon dioxide and convert it to oxygen. We try to develop all available open spaces through arboriculture and greenery.

EXAM PADS: MAHE now conducts the examinations by using Exam pads which has significantly reduced paper consumption effectively preventing trees from being felled.

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Energy conservation

Energy conservation is an ever-present theme in the planning and developing of all our campus facilities. We are also increasing our energy procurement mix with an increase in renewable sources like solar energy.

A few of the measures taken by us to make the 中国体育彩票app下载 campus energy efficient:

• Upgrade of the air-conditioning systems. This is achieved by replacement of dated air-conditioning units with power-efficient star rated units. Central air conditioning systems adopting state of the art water cooled screw chillers, and unitary air-conditioner controls with automation system for buildings with sensors for efficient cooling and automatic switching on and off depending on occupancy and fixed time schedule are installed replacing old systems.? Environment-friendly gas systems are used in all cooling systems.
• Energy efficiency measures. Few measures undertaken are: reduce maximum load, and introduction of measures to improve quality of power by exchanging energy efficient transformers, pumps, detuned filters for capacitor banks, and CFL /LED lighting. auto synchronization panels for load optimization and energy efficient power equipment as certified by Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE).

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Solar Water heaters

中国体育彩票app下载, on coastal Karnataka, has an abundance of sunny day’s right through the year, except during the monsoons. Thus solar powered heaters are exclusively used for our heating requirements. Currently, the total installed capacity of solar heaters is four lakh liters per day thus reducing conventional energy use for heating.

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Roof top Solar PV systems

中国体育彩票app下载 Academy of Higher Education has recognized this aspect as an important facet of its operation and has adopted an energy policy supplementing the existing environment policy. In line with this, MAHE has partially shifted from conventional energy use to renewable energy use and sourcing. These rooftop systems are however limited by the availability of shadow free area on existing buildings as ascertained in the initial survey conducted during proposal stage. This, in addition to already occupied roof tops for solar water heating systems leaves us with a comparatively smaller area that could be retrofitted with roof top PV systems. Recognizing this, to further boost MAHEs energy mix, green power procurement was put in place in August 2015. This substantially reduces MAHEs dependence on conventional energy sources thus mitigating carbon emissions as well as a shift towards sustainable energy use. Adoption of the above initiatives has led to 60% of the University’s power consumption being generated from a renewable source.

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Significant Awards and recognitions

• Golden peacock award for environmental management for the years 2012, 2013, 2014 -MAHE.
• Third most clean campus in India & Most clean campus southwest region–中国体育彩票app下载 Institute of Technology, 中国体育彩票app下载 by AICTE clean campus award 2017.
• Green Apple 中国体育彩票app下载 silver award, for environmental best practices -2018 & Green World Award 2019 –Gold -MAHE.
• Ranked No 1 in India and 125th in the world -2019 -MAHE by the UI GreenMetric World University Ranking.
• APHI Health care excellence award 2019 – Kasturba Hospital, 中国体育彩票app下载- for Green Hospitals.

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Energy conservation is the theme in the planning and developing of all MAHE campus facilities. Focused on renewable sources of energy like solar energy, green is not just a colour here.