Operations
Managing wastewater safely
Queen Mary has formal processes for managing wastewater and trade effluent before it enters the wider sewerage system. The University distinguishes between normal wastewater, surface-water runoff, trade effluent and laboratory wastewater.
Trade effluent is discharged under formal consent arrangements and must comply with specified conditions. Queen Mary also applies controls to laboratory wastewater, while concentrated or hazardous chemicals must not be discharged to drains and instead follow authorised hazardous-waste disposal procedures. These controls help to provide an institutional process for managing wastewater generated through teaching, research and operational activity.
Preventing pollution of the water system
Queen Mary operates formal controls for wastewater and trade effluent to prevent pollutants from entering drains, sewers and the wider water system.
Hazardous substances, including persistent chemicals, petroleum hydrocarbons, chlorinated compounds and strongly acidic or alkaline materials, must not be disposed of through sinks. Instead, they are managed through authorised hazardous-waste procedures.
Pollution prevention is also supported by Queen Mary’s Environmental Incident and Emergency Response, Spill Response and Equipment Refuelling procedures, which set out how accidental releases should be prevented, reported, contained and managed.
These controls form part of Queen Mary’s ISO 14001-certified Environmental Management System, which was successfully recertified in April 2025.
Free drinking water across campus
Students, staff and public/visitors have access to free drinking water across Queen Mary’s campuses. The University provides more than 20 water coolers, alongside water dispensers in kitchens and drinking-water fountains across its main campuses.
Facilities are available across locations including Mile End, Whitechapel, West Smithfield, Charterhouse Square and Lincoln’s Inn Fields, helping students, staff and visitors refill reusable bottles without needing to purchase bottled water.
Water-conscious buildings
Water efficiency is incorporated into Queen Mary’s approach to new construction and refurbishment. The University continues to use BREEAM for new builds and major refurbishment projects and SKA assessments for applicable fit-out and refurbishment projects. Operational measures include low-flow water fittings, while leak-detection systems are incorporated into new building projects to identify unnecessary water loss and reduce wastage.
Major new-build projects aim for BREEAM Excellent, supporting a wider approach in which water efficiency forms part of sustainable building design.
Reducing irrigation through conscious planting
Queen Mary has been changing its planting approach by introducing more sustainable herbaceous perennials for minimising water usage and reliance on annual bedding plants.
Because established perennial planting generally requires less frequent replacement and watering, this approach helps reduce irrigation demand across campus green spaces while also supporting biodiversity.
Queen Mary has also previously introduced more efficient irrigation systems, including drip-feed systems designed to reduce water use and wastage by delivering water more directly to plants.
Water reuse
Queen Mary’s sustainability planning includes commitments to improve water efficiency across its estate and to consider water reuse as part of future construction and refurbishment.
The University’s Environmental Sustainability Action Plan sets out a long-term ambition to explore integrating rainwater and greywater harvesting into new-build and refurbishment projects, alongside wider measures to reduce water consumption.
Queen Mary’s current sustainability planning continues to prioritise improved water infrastructure, monitoring and efficiency across its campuses.
Promoting conscious water use on campus
Queen Mary actively encourages students and staff to reduce unnecessary water consumption through sustainability communications and practical guidance.
In January 2025, Queen Mary Residential Life published energy-saving advice for students living in halls, including guidance to keep showers under four minutes to reduce both water and energy use. The campaign encourages students to develop everyday resource-saving habits while living on campus.
This behaviour-change activity is supported by Queen Mary’s Environmental Sustainability Action Statement, which sets an institutional objective to improve the monitoring and awareness of water supply use in order to reduce consumption and improve water efficiency across the University.