Conserving Resources & Responsibly Managing Materials
We responsibly manage materials and encourage circularity through recycling initiatives, reuse programs, and collaborations with suppliers.
Waste Reduction Programs
In an effort to reduce the amount of waste sent to landfill, several of our facilities have implemented efforts such as recycling, composting, promoting a culture of re-use, and eliminating single-use plastics. A combination of these efforts across Universal Studios Hollywood, the Universal Studio Lot, and DreamWorks Animation have resulted in over 75% of waste diverted from landfill.
Donating excess food can help provide meals to those in need and prevents food waste from producing methane in landfills. To minimize our food waste, the NBCUniversal Sustainable Production Program has donated over 125,000 meals to hunger relief charities. In addition, employee commissaries at the Universal Studio Lot and DreamWorks, along with food establishments within the Universal Studios Hollywood theme park and CityWalk, donate excess food regularly.
Reducing the amount of waste generated is the first step in our waste management strategy, including working to replace single-use items with reusable alternatives. Universal Orlando Resorts and Universal Studios Hollywood both increased guest-facing reusables to avoid single-use serving items like plates and utensils, enhancing guest experience and reducing the amount of waste sent to landfill.
Water Conservation
We are working to better measure our water usage across key facilities in order to implement better management and locate reduction opportunities.
As we continue to grow our business, we are designing our facilities with conservation in mind. New construction at Universal City Studios in California was designed with low-flow water fixtures estimated to reduce indoor water usage by 46%. In addition, low-impact development strategies were implemented to reduce water runoff from the site.
To conserve freshwater resources, our largest properties at Universal Orlando Resorts, Universal City Studios, and Universal Studios Hollywood utilize recycled water when available for landscape irrigation in conjunction with irrigation control systems to adjust watering schedules based on weather data and ground moisture.
The Universal Studios Lot uses stormwater treatment devices across the property to filter runoff water before returning to the LA River. The studio is also piloting a project to capture urban runoff and filter it for reuse for onsite irrigation, saving an additional 2 million gallons per year.
Production Set Reuse & Donations
NBCUniversal has managed large-scale set reuse programs for decades, including our asset centers in LA, New York, and Miami with 384,000 square feet of set materials that are repurposed from show to show at no cost to the production. When filming outside those hubs, NBCUniversal film and TV productions donate materials to the local community, including nonprofit organizations, local schools, theaters, and more.
We also find creative ways to give sets a longer life. The original Jupiter’s Claim set from Jordan Peele’s, Nope, was repurposed to a new attraction on the world-famous Studio Tour at Universal Studios Hollywood.
