Measuring University Waste Generation and Recycling

Termez State University measures waste generation and records reuse, recycling, material recovery and treatment across its campuses. Its 2025 annual accounts identify organic waste, non-toxic inorganic waste and hazardous waste separately. The combined generation recorded in these three categories was 229.70 tonnes. The accounts also record the quantities managed through different routes and the residual material or controlled temporary storage remaining at the end of the reporting period.

The university-wide system covers academic and administrative buildings, laboratories, student residences, canteens, campus service areas and landscaped grounds. Its public 3R programme describes continuous collection of waste-generation information, including office waste, laboratory residues, canteen disposables and packaging from university suppliers. Annual records organise these measurements by waste type and handling route, supporting comparison between generation and the quantities reused, recycled or otherwise treated.

The Policy on Waste Management, Resource Minimization, and Sustainable Practices, effective from 1 January 2025, provides the institutional basis for this work. The university implements the policy through separate programmes for paper and plastic reduction, organic waste, non-toxic inorganic waste and hazardous materials. All solid-waste amounts in the following account are expressed in metric tonnes.

The total is calculated by adding the three annual stream accounts. The 206.66 tonnes treated or handled combines reuse, biological treatment, inorganic material recovery and controlled hazardous-waste handling. Its 89.97% rate describes this combined management activity. Recycling and recovery quantities retain their separate classifications within the individual accounts, so the reported outcome preserves the actual handling route.

The same three categories generated 247.95 tonnes in 2024: 132.60 tonnes of organic waste, 113.50 tonnes of non-toxic inorganic waste and 1.85 tonnes of hazardous waste. Their combined generation therefore decreased by 18.25 tonnes in 2025, equivalent to 7.36%. This year-to-year comparison uses the same three categories and gives the university a consistent measure of change in recorded waste generation.

Non-toxic inorganic waste is measured by material type. The 2025 account records 31.0 tonnes of paper, 17.2 tonnes of soft plastic, 38.3 tonnes of hard plastic and 17.6 tonnes of glass, metals and other non-toxic materials. Together these equal 104.1 tonnes. Treatment records distinguish 5.5 tonnes reused, 3.0 tonnes down-cycled and 81.5 tonnes classified as up-cycling or material recovery. The two latter categories together account for 84.5 tonnes of recorded recycling and material-recovery activity.

The material-level account reconciles generation with reuse, processing and residual quantities. It also allows the university to see which streams contribute most to recovery and where residual material remains.

The separate paper-and-plastic account is a subset of the inorganic inventory. It totals 86.5 tonnes in 2025, comprising 31.0 tonnes of paper and 55.5 tonnes of plastic. This compares with 95.0 tonnes in 2024, a reduction of 8.5 tonnes or 8.95%. Consolidation of the university total uses the full inorganic category, which already includes these paper and plastic quantities.

Organic waste is recorded by source and treatment method. In 2025, generation amounted to 124.0 tonnes: 94.5 tonnes of food waste from canteens, residences and food-service areas; 21.8 tonnes of leaves, grass and pruning residues; and 7.7 tonnes of other biodegradable materials. This source breakdown connects the annual measurements with the campus activities that generate the waste.

Of the food-waste stream, 54.0 tonnes were directed to controlled beneficial reuse and 33.0 tonnes to composting, mulching or soil-improvement practices. The food-waste residual was 7.5 tonnes. Green waste contributed 21.5 tonnes to biological treatment and 0.3 tonnes to the residual stream. Other biodegradable waste contributed 6.7 tonnes to biological treatment, with 1.0 tonne remaining as residual material.

The organic account therefore records 54.0 tonnes reused and 61.2 tonnes processed through composting, mulching and soil improvement. Together they total 115.2 tonnes, giving a treatment rate of 92.9% against the 124.0 tonnes generated. Residual organic waste amounted to 8.8 tonnes. These categories retain beneficial reuse and biological processing as distinct measured outcomes.

Hazardous waste has its own quantitative account and controlled handling arrangements. The 2025 generation total was 1.60 tonnes, comprising 1.10 tonnes of laboratory chemicals, 0.45 tonnes of electronic waste and 0.05 tonnes of other hazardous materials. The recorded handled quantities were 0.98, 0.43 and 0.05 tonnes respectively, totalling 1.46 tonnes. This represents a hazardous-waste handling rate of 91.3%. The remaining 0.14 tonnes comprised 0.12 tonnes of chemical waste and 0.02 tonnes of electronic waste in controlled temporary storage.

The hazardous programme records identification, source separation, compatible containment, temporary storage, documented transfer and specialised treatment or recovery. Its handled total covers controlled treatment, neutralisation, recovery and transfer to authorised operators. Public university information identifies external chemical-waste processing through BIO TECHNO EKO and electronic-waste recycling through Best Labor LLC in Tashkent, alongside treatment in the university’s own laboratory.

Collection infrastructure supports measurement and material separation. Sorting bins, designated collection areas and campus waste maps document arrangements at the Main, Western and Northern campuses and the Rectorate. Recyclable materials are separated before collection and transfer. The university’s cooperation agreement with TechnoBioEko supports collection, transportation, sorting and processing, connecting the campus account with external material handling.

Monitoring combines annual quantities by category with records of waste transfers and review of separation and recycling practices. The university also has a dedicated digital waste-monitoring platform to support tracking of major categories and sustainability reporting. Generation, reuse, material recovery, treatment and residual quantities provide complementary measures of performance within the system.

The Vice-Rector for Finance and Economic Affairs coordinates implementation with the relevant administrative and environmental units. Annual review considers the waste measurements, reusable-asset records and recycling-transfer documentation. This gives the university a continuing basis for assessing reductions, improving separation arrangements and reviewing the performance of its internal treatment practices and external waste-management relationships.