Water

UWO CAMPUS

UW Oshkosh’s 171-acre campus is located along Wisconsin’s Fox River and just blocks away from Lake Winnebago, the largest inland body of water in the state. Our university is committed to reducing water consumption and pollution associated with stormwater runoff.

UWO fresh water and stormwater initiatives include campus audits, surveys of water use, education, implementation of stringent erosion control standards, and green engineering site design. Additionally, the on-campus Environmental Research and Innovation Center is a state-of-the-art facility approved for well-water testing and leads Wisconsin in Great Lakes beach water quality monitoring.

Water conservation

UW Oshkosh has reduced water consumption by 24,483,298 gallons per year by

1,006 toilets replaced (3.24 – 4.50 gallon-per-flush removed and replaced with 1.6 gpf)
Sloan 1.6 flushometer valves installed
1,181 low-flow restrictors & adaptors installed onto faucets
Water Bottle Refill stations installed all over campus, saving over 837,916 bottles from the landfill

HABs Project

Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs) contribute to oxygen depletion in local waterways severely devastating local ecosystems. UWO is committed to studying the health of local waters systems and improving it through the HAB project. The goal of the project is to restore the health of the natural waterways and bring back biodiversity, and mitigate environmental impacts of nutrient runoff.

For more information of what UWO is doing click this link to learn more and stay up to date about the HABs project.

At $5.350 per 1000 gallons, this has translated to $130,985.64 in annual savings from reduced water consumption and $4,594 in annual savings of heating fuel (for hot water).

Replacing natural turf at Titan Stadium with artificial turf has resulted in water savings of 850,000 gallons per year for irrigation, saving the campus a little over $4,500 annually.

UW Oshkosh is committed to reducing campus-wide fresh water consumption by 20% (per sq. ft.) from 2012 levels by 2019. Learn more about fresh water conservation at UWO in the Campus Sustainability Plan.

Stormwater Runoff Management

How we manage stormwater affects the quality of surface and ground waters. UW Oshkosh is working to follow stormwater management best practices while implementing green engineering and site design guidelines for all capital projects.

UW Oshkosh strives to divert stormwater for irrigation use and to comply with DNR stormwater permit requirements. Learn more by reading our stormwater management plan, which is followed by UW Oshkosh Facilities.

Sustainability Institute for Regional Transformations

UW Oshkosh
800 Algoma Blvd.
Oshkosh, WI 54901

Contact Info:

sirt@uwosh.edu

(920) 424-0440

SIRT Office: 4483 Sage Hall

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