"Pathways to a Green Campus" Report

11. Waste Minimization, continued

V. Examples of Waste Reduction Efforts Attempted

Already the College has begun to think about reducing and reusing waste. Programs such as those listed below should be continued and maybe even expanded while new ones are developed. Many did not even happen through the efforts of the Recycling Office, they were taken on by other departments. In no way is this a comprehensive list, merely a chance to view the range of tasks undertaken.

C.U.P.P.S. Program - Dining Services provides every student with a reusable mug at the beginning of each year. Faculty and staff who needed a replacement mug are also issued them. These mugs are free of charge and encourage reuse on campus.

Styrofoam Peanuts/Shredded Paper Giveaway - These materials are donated to local businesses ranging from Holy Cow to the Shipping Store to Illuminae DuMonde.

Jiffy Mailers - Mailers are collected through the recycling program and reused. Students, faculty or staff can obtain them in the mailroom for free. Interlibrary loan reuses jiffy mailers from WRMC and donates excess to the student mailroom.

Office Exchange - A Suggest-it program winner designed to provide college employees with surplus and/or unwanted office supplies. In 1994, two days were designated for this exchange where anyone could drop items off or take them at no cost. This event was very successful, allowing over 50 people to give new life to unwanted materials.

Tag Sale - The Purchasing Department sponsored a tag sale in 1993 to clear out old desks, dishes, mirrors, etc. that were no longer being used. The price was right and shoppers were more than happy!

Waste Exchange - The Recycling Office posts a monthly waste exchange that lists materials people wish to give away or are searching for. All materials are free. This listing is located on the gopher. Currently, I call this an underutilized service.

Copy Machines - Purchasing acquired new copy machines for the entire campus. Most copiers have the capability of doing double-sided copying easily without having to go to the central duplicating center. The Recycling Office did a publicity campaign by posting double-sided copying information specific to the copier above each new Minolta.

Spring Clean-up Day - Last spring the Recycling Office sponsored a pre-move-out clean up day to try to capture a greater percentage of recyclables and to ensure that clothing and other unwanted goods made it to local charities instead of in the trash. Residential Life was very supportive of this project.

Evaluation of Periodicals - The library inventoried its periodical purchases and eliminated 150 that were not being read.

Paperless Office - Ron Liebowitz (we are told) has pledged to run a paperless office where all work is done electronically.

VI. Waste Reduction--Specific Idea List

A. Discussion has begun. . .

• Mandate attendance of all residential life staff to a 15-30 minute recycling talk with the Coordinator.

• Speak with students directly at new student orientation and dorm meetings instead of trying to communicate only through brochures and posters. Recently, I have begun offering to speak through student organizations and social houses and have achieved greater success than through the Residential Life staff.

• Purchase more durable (and perhaps fire-safe) recycling bins, especially for residential buildings. This has already been done in Battell and particular halls on campus. Plastic or metal bins are costly and finding the optimal bin will require research as well as a financial commitment from the College. More durable bins will 1) minimize waste from dorm damage and wear and tear on the cardboard bins; 2) be potentially safer; and 3) be more attractive.

• Use two-way envelopes. These have a flap on the inside that allows respondents to mail correspondence in the same envelope in which they receive information.

• Publish a guide to recycling on the World Wide Web. A student has volunteered to begin this project.

B. Still to be initiated

• Faculty need to be educated about recycling. New faculty should be exposed to a brief (10-15 minute presentation) about recycling. [New staff currently receive this introduction through the Human Resources new staff orientation sessions.]

• Coordinate end of year activities more closely with local charitable organizations so that materials more easily find their way into the hands of the needy instead of the dumpster.

• Make a reuse guide of repair and consignment shops as well as charities and organizations that accept donations. Compile names and phone numbers.

• Operate a free store where materials can be constantly dropped off and collected (nothing glamorous, a barn that people can have access to and take or leave materials for no charge. Perhaps have volunteers stock shelves, clean up or take inventory.)

• Convert all campus departments to nickel-cadmium rechargeable batteries. Have a battery charger accessible for student use. Educate community about the benefits of rechargeables over single-use. The Renewals (rechargeable alkalines) have worked poorly in Facilities Management where we are experimenting with them.

• Encourage vendors to use reusable packaging or to reuse the boxes they currently ship to us. In general, minimize the flow of packaging materials that enter campus.

• Seek out the reusable pizza boxes. A company (in Wisconsin I think) makes pizza boxes from plastic. Customers put a deposit on them. The College could pay the deposit and work out an arrangement with the local pizza places. Pizza boxes are often difficult to recycle because of the food stuck to the inside. Now that we no longer compost bulky papers, many pizza boxes are likely to end up in the trash.

• Look at lifecycle costs of a product when making purchasing decisions. Currently, departments operating on separate accounts from Facilities Management have no need to consider how much it might cost to dispose of something. Instead, they are concerned only with how much it might cost to acquire. Perhaps find a way to pass the cost of recycling or disposal on to the generator.

• Encourage all departments to buy concentrates (when available). These products can be mixed on site to reduce shipping and packaging costs and minimize waste. Often containers are reused. Custodial services has implemented this practice with successful results. They would have a useful model for interested departments.

• Develop a poster policy establishing the maximum number of posters allowed and appropriate areas where they might be hung. This will not only reduce paper consumption but will help to prevent fire hazards and damage to walls where there are no corkboards. When compliance is achieved, it may also save the custodial staff time.

• Keep College and departmental mailing lists up to date so as to alleviate unsuccessful mailings. Remedy problems in cases where people receive double mailings. If staff do not have time, employ students on work study to make phone calls and verify addresses or track down correct ones. When mailings are sent, employ all waste reduction strategies such as send and return envelopes and double-sided copying.

• Reduce unnecessary mailings to students, parents, alumni, faculty and staff.

• Create a double-sided copying policy in which departments receive an economic advantage for making double-sided over single-sided without having to go to Reprographics to do it.

• Install fax modems so that documents can be sent from computer to computer or computer to fax machine, eliminating the need for extra printing.

• Encourage/require that professors have students submit papers through First Class to eliminate the need to print papers. First Class could also be utilized by more committees and organizations, especially those sharing information and writing reports. If papers are not printed on First Class, allow/require papers to be printed on both sides of the paper.

• Use paper goods only for to-go purchases in dining facilities. This would require some renovation to the system currently employed in Rehearsals and the Pro Shop which are not equipped to handle dishwashing.

• Take over the recycling for College rental units where the College is responsible for waste. This will allow recyclables to count toward our diversion percentages and capture a greater number of materials. White paper from these residences is a concern when we collect it with our commercial waste. The Town is the current hindrance in this venture.

• Make register receipts for people charging to their IDs only upon request.

• Require departments handling visitors/contractors/guests to comply with recycling program and include information for their invitees. Visiting populations often do not follow the game plan, such as those attending Alumni Weekend.

• Replace plastic bags with smaller ones that are more closely suited to the size of recycling bins and waste receptacles we have on campus. This would mean that we might have to carry two or three different size trash bags to accommodate grey rounds, blue toters, recycling and waste bins and smaller, personal size receptacles.

• Use old phonebooks in less frequently used locations such as pay phones. Have one phonebook with each telephone instead of each employee.

• Reprographics makes pads from scratch paper. These could be sold through the College Store to departments on campus. This task could be saved for down times.

• Expand the CUPPS discount from simply the Crest Room to include Rehearsals and the Pro Shop snack bar as well.

• Departmental contest to reduce waste or a call for suggestions.

VII. Conclusion

Middlebury College has come a long way since the report issued in 1989 and even the second one issued in 1992. There are many things to be proud of, as demonstrated by the diversion percentages (57% in 1994). The work is never-ending though: the student body changes, new faculty and staff are hired, language students come and go, leadership roles are handed down, and people can lose energy and contribute less effort. Waste minimization requires constant attention, especially at the start and end of each semester.

Recycling alone cannot be the answer to the solid waste and environmental issues in America. The process still consumes energy and resources. Now that Middlebury College actively recycles, members of the College community must move beyond the first stage and engage in waste prevention activities. Convincing people to reduce waste is a difficult task--it is not as tangible as recycling. When you reduce waste, you do not have a heaping bin full of materials to weigh. Waste that has been reduced is waste that you never saw or missed.

Middlebury College operates with some wonderful practices, but none of them are policies. Most people recycle, but there are no consequences for those that do not. Purchasers inquire about recycled content and try for the greatest possible percentages. This is an informal policy strongly suggested by George Whitney, the Director of Operations, but what happens when people change jobs and the individuals driving these initiatives are gone? It is time to solidify recycling and waste reduction through policy formation and to let our manufacturers and distributors know what we want and that we will accept no substitutes.

NOTE: Those interested in the development of Recycling at Middlebury should consult the following reports: "No Time to Waste," by Environmental Studies 401 (class report, February, 1989); "Recycling and Composting at Middlebury College", by Heidi Van Winkle (Summer 1992); and "A Look at Recycling at Middlebury, by Holly Cookis" (February 1995). These reports may be found in the Office of the Recycling or Environmental Coordinator, Service Building.

Waste Minimization Subcommittee
Holly Cookis
Sarah S. Rebick, '97

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