Semarang — Universitas Negeri Semarang (UNNES) has established an institutional framework for water conservation, wastewater treatment, and pollution prevention through Rector’s Regulation No. 109 of 2024. The framework connects responsible campus water use with measures intended to limit environmental pressures on surrounding water resources and aquatic ecosystems.
Institutional Policy for Water Conservation
Established on 29 October 2024, Rector’s Regulation No. 109 of 2024 on Water Conservation Management Guidelines replaced Rector’s Regulation No. 21 of 2022. It provides a university-wide basis for managing water resources used in academic and non-academic activities.
The framework covers rainwater, surface water, groundwater, and wastewater. It brings water conservation, recycling, and pollution control into campus management, linking resource availability with environmental protection.
Rainwater Harvesting and Campus Water Retention
Within this framework, UNNES promotes rainwater harvesting, infiltration wells, biopores, and water retention facilities known as embung. These measures collect and manage rainfall while supporting more efficient use of campus water resources.
The university’s policy report also describes ground tanks, watering systems, and water-consumption meters. Together, these facilities connect rainwater collection, storage, distribution, and consumption monitoring within campus operations. Managing rainfall and runoff provides a complementary approach to protecting receiving water bodies, although the cited reports do not quantify reductions in sediment or pollutant transport.
Wastewater Treatment and Reuse
Wastewater treatment is a central component of UNNES’s approach to pollution prevention. The university’s policy report states that wastewater containing hazardous materials must undergo treatment at wastewater treatment facilities, or Instalasi Pengolahan Air Limbah (IPAL), before disposal.
Alongside treatment requirements, UNNES reports wastewater recycling for garden irrigation and pond maintenance in faculties equipped with treatment facilities. Its integrated water management program also includes rainwater harvesting and ablution-water recycling.
These practices connect conservation with the reuse of water for appropriate campus purposes. Reusing treated water offers an alternative supply for landscape maintenance and reduces reliance on additional freshwater abstraction.
Connecting Campus Water Management with Aquatic Protection
UNNES’s regulations and reported practices establish an institutional basis for conserving water and managing wastewater before reuse or disposal. They connect everyday campus operations with efforts to prevent pollution from reaching rivers and other aquatic environments.
The available sources document policy provisions and reported water-management practices. They do not establish that every campus wastewater discharge met applicable standards throughout 2025 or quantify improvements in surrounding aquatic ecosystems. The evidence therefore demonstrates an institutional framework for water conservation and pollution prevention, while measured compliance and ecological outcomes remain separate matters.