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Durham Cathedral and Castle Skyline

Durham is a Creating Impact finalist in Green Gown Awards 2024

13 August 2024
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We have been shortlisted as a finalist for the Creating Impact category award in this year's UK & Ireland Green Gown Awards for our project entitled 93 to 19 – The Odorbac Initiative. Lisa Blundell, Senior Housekeeping, Cleaning and General Services Manager in our Accommodation and Commercial Services, explains more about the project and how it supports our sustainability strategy.

What is the 93 to 19 – The Odorbac Initiative at Durham and why is it important?

Colleagues in Accommodation and Commercial Services (ACS) and our College Operations Directorate have been working collaboratively with our suppliers to identify and introduce a more sustainable range of cleaning products whilst streamlining the number of products and improving safety for staff and students. This collaboration has resulted in 93 to 19 – The Odorbac Initiative, the introduction of a new range of cleaning products.

With over 330 staff working across our Housekeeping and Cleaning Service teams in ACS and College Operations, by implementing sustainable initiatives like this, it helps us to multiply the positive impact we have on the environment.

How does our 93 to 19 – The Odorbac Initiative benefit those on campus and other areas?

Odorbac is non-hazardous, non-irritant, non-carcinogenic, environmentally friendly and fully biodegradable. By implementing Odorbac, it has significantly helped us to reduce our cleaning product range from 93 to 19 and minimise our waste. Odorbac is sourced from a local supplier called 2Pure within 25 miles from the University which has also helped to reduce our supply chain emissions.

63% of the previous cleaning products we used carried safety hazard warnings and 8% environmental hazard warnings. In contrast, Odorbac has 0% physical and environmental hazards, making it a safer choice for both the users and the environment. Odorbac is as if not more effective than the products it has replaced and allows our teams to provide a good service on campus whether this be within our Departments or Colleges while doing so in a more sustainable way.

How does our 93 to 19 – The Odorbac Initiative positively impact sustainability at Durham?

Our previous supplier offered little stability in terms of price with 4 increases in 3 years. 2Pure held their prices throughout the pandemic and to date still haven't increased prices which has enabled more money to be invested elsewhere within the University. The transition to Odorbac has also had a positive impact on our carbon footprint and the environment including:

  • Chemical reduction: If manufacturers’ guidelines are followed, an estimated 160,263 litres of different chemicals, at ‘in use’ dilutions, could be replaced by 7,885 litres of Odorbac, delivering a huge saving of 152,378 litres of product.
  • CO2 savings: This change has saved 161kg of CO2 to date, plus a further CO2 reduction of 87.1kg via Odorbac's loop recycling scheme.
  • Virgin plastic savings and single-use plastics: The reduction in single-use packages has saved 121.1kg of virgin plastic to date, with the re-use of 288 plastic containers. The initial Odorbac packaging is made from re-used milk bottles.
  • Closed loop recycling: We order Odorbac in quantities of 4 x 5L bottles delivered in a cardboard loop box. We return our empty 5L bottles to the loop box which is collected by our supplier when full so the bottles can be reused.

What are your hopes for 93 to 19 – The Odorbac Initiative in future?

Odorbac is now implemented in all core cleaning operations across the University. As Odorbac continues to develop, we hope the 19 products can be reduced further and make more positive contributions in terms of the sustainability within our operation. We also hope our initiative inspires local partners to adopt similar changes within their businesses to be more sustainable.

What does it mean to be shortlisted for the Green Gown Awards 2024?

It is great to be recognised for making a positive contribution to our environment and to be shortlisted is a great honour which reinforces our high quality work and commitment in this area.

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