Here at Rensselaer there are many opportunities to recycle a variety of materials, from paper, cardboard, metal, plastic, and glass to clothes, batteries, electronics, and printer toner cartridges. However, rarely, if ever, do we stop to think where our waste goes and how our consumption as individuals integrates into a larger system of production and disposal. For example, the bottle of water or can of soda we drink: What happens to the empty container? Or the virgin backs of handouts from class? If placed in the garbage bin their ultimate fate is most likely a landfill, but if reused or recycled their inherent value may still be realized. Pursuing this line of thinking further, commodities are viewed as limited and therefore precious, requiring effective management. The “reduce, reuse, recycle” paradigm follows naturally and is the guiding principle in any conservation effort.
Recycling is an important part of Rensselaer’s solid waste management system, accounting for a quarter of the waste generated on campus over the past five years. There is additional benefit to recycling at Rensselaer in the form of $160 per ton in avoided waste hauling fees. Unfortunately, however, dumpster dives conducted by EcoLogic in the last five years have shown that approximately half of the dumpster contents are recyclable (e.g., paper, cardboard, glass, metal, and plastic), corresponding to about $125,000 a year in unnecessary expenses. Looking around, we discovered that this was due to the inconsistent nature of the facilities provided for recycling through out the campus. We set out to do something about this.
Redistributing bins on the Student Union’s third floor resulted in a four-fold decrease in contamination rate. Catering Services was contacted and recycling bins were placed at the most commonly catered locations on campus to provide bottle and can recycling for events. Recycling bins have been placed in several other buildings on campus, such as the Jonsson Engineering Center, Greene Building, the Heffner Alumni House, and the Darrin Communications Center to provide students, faculty, and staff improved and updated recycling facilities.
The Student Sustainability Task Force and EcoLogic held several activities last Earth Week dealing with solid waste issues. Face the Waste: 2008, the various large installations displaying waste generated on campus and presenting possibilities for its reuse, brought waste and recycling issues to the forefront of our collective awareness.
EcoLogic continues its successful recycled notebook program, collects materials such as batteries, and has collaborated with the Archer Center for Student Leadership to help reduce waste for the 2008 Leadership Conference. In addition, dumpster dives will be happening periodically, so keep your eyes and ears open for a chance to have fun, make friends and collect pertinent data.
Remember that each of us as an individual has great power to make changes, especially if we work together to understand the challenges we face. If you have any concerns about garbage or recycling on campus, please contact me at cohenb2@rpi.edu.
Editor’s Note: “Sustainability: Inside Scoop” and “Sustainability: Outside Scoop” are columns granted to the Student Sustainability Task Force by the Editorial Board to discuss issues of sustainability on the RPI campus and around the nation.
