An investigation into the feasibility of Bring Your Own Container program at the new Student Union Building : a triple bottom line assessment

The construction of the new Student Union Building (SUB) at the University of British Columbia (UBC) provides a perfect opportunity to make changes to the existing food container system. UBC strives to reduce solid waste and carbon footprint in order to establish a more sustainable campus. Alma Master Society (AMS) is proposing their eleven food outlets to implement the Bring Your Own Container (BYOC) concept in the new SUB. The BYOC is a system in which customers are required to bring their own reusable container instead of the store providing disposable take-out containers. The program aims to reduce the solid waste produced by disposable containers. For the investigation, it is assumed that the food outlets will only supply food to customers who bring reusable containers. A triple bottom line analysis for sustainability is conducted to determine the feasibility of adopting the BYOC program in the new SUB. A survey is created to collect the opinions of students around the campus for the social aspect. The economic and environmental aspect is investigated by studying the similar programs that currently exists in UBC and other universities. The reusable containers have an apparent positive impact on the environment. However, they take more energy to produce, so the reusable containers must be used at least a specific amount of time before it generates a net benefit on the environment. Customers benefit from the BYOC containers economic wise; conversely, food outlets have to subsidize the discount program creating a negative impact on stores. Overall, the economic aspect can be considered as having a neutral effect. The social aspect has a neutral standpoint in the sustainability analysis. Data from the survey suggests that a majority of survey candidates are neutral for willingness to participate in the BYOC program. It is recommended that food outlets should still provide disposable take-out container, but with a surcharge. This option will not drive the customers away to purchasing elsewhere that supplies disposable containers. In addition, the new SUB should have facilities to accommodate the demands for washing the reusable containers. By taking the recommendations into consideration, it is practical to launch the BYOC program in the new SUB. Disclaimer: “UBC SEEDS provides students with the opportunity to share the findings of their studies, as well as their opinions, conclusions and recommendations with the UBC community. The reader should bear in mind that this is a student project/report and is not an official document of UBC. Furthermore readers should bear in mind that these reports may not reflect the current status of activities at UBC. We urge you to contact the research persons mentioned in a report or the SEEDS Coordinator about the current status of the subject matter of a project/report.”Applied Science, Faculty ofUnreviewedUndergraduat