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Student, administrative efforts lead to revamped recycling program

University’s goal is to recycle 30 percent of waste annually

November 15, 2004 | For more information: Kimyette Finley 216-368-0521

They’ve been springing up all over campus: new bins for paper, plastics and glass and aluminum cans. Recycling at Case Western Reserve University isn’t new, but a revamped program that brings students and faculty and staff together has organizers enthusiastic about the newest efforts.

The revamped recycling program includes a recycling bin infrastructure in academic, administrative and residential buildings on campus. In addition, a recycling coordinator who will be responsible for conducting educational programs with faculty and staff is expected to be hired soon.

“The residence halls are completely equipped with recycling equipment, and our goal is to be campus-wide,” said Sue Woolf, department assistant with facilities services and the interim recycling coordinator. The School of Medicine, dining services, University Circle and exterior locations will be incorporated into the recycling program in the future.

Residence hall recycling representatives have been working extensively in their own residence halls, as well as academic buildings, to educate and promote the new program to the campus. They also are working on an “adopt a building” program. In the future, there are plans to hire students as recycling employees.

Back up and running

There have been several incarnations of a recycling program at Case throughout the years, including scaled-down versions due to limited resources, said Eugene Matthews, director of facilities services. However, there has always been an effort – especially by students – to get a full program back up and running.

“Students have upheld the need to expand recycling on campus,” said Marianne Stott, a student recycling intern majoring in professional studies at Case’s Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences. She pointed out the ongoing efforts of the Sierra Club, a campus group that focuses on the environment and that the Undergraduate Student Government has worked to get students involved in recycling.

In addition, Rein Lambrecht, student recycling director majoring in biology, said she and other students involved with the recycling effort spoke with incoming students at several summer orientations to promote the program, and they also made a video to educate people about recycling. Students have also helped plan logistical aspects of the program.

Lambrecht has worked with custodial services and other students to plan the distribution of the new recycling bins to the entire campus, and Stott and Remy Olsen, former student recycling coordinator currently in Denmark for her junior year, worked on a job description for the recycling coordinator, as well as the Web site, http://www.case.edu/finadmin/recycling, which includes areas for feedback and work request forms.

Students take the lead

James Sears, assistant director for facilities services for custodial services, said the students’ involvement will be important to the overall success of the program.

“There’s a grassroots push from the students that I haven’t seen before,” Sears said. “You couldn’t go into a dorm and not see recycling information and receptacles, even before we got the new ones. When you get the kind of student support we have it makes it a lot easier. When we have students behind this, it motivates the rest of the campus community to do the right thing.”

To set the program in motion, Matthews, Sears and several students drafted a business plan. Matthews said Hossein Sadid, Case’s chief financial and administrative officer, was very supportive of the plan. Funds from the custodial department (which also provides the labor for the program’s infrastructure), facilities services and housing and residence life, as well as other resources, contribute to various aspects of the program, such as educational materials and supplies.

“It’s a coordinated effort of a lot of departments,” Matthews explained. ‘We’re trying to be as cost-effective as we can by using money in our own budgets. The collaborative approach should help us accomplish most of our goals.”

Woolf and the recycling interns worked with the custodial services department to install collection containers in residence halls and academic buildings, including desksliders for paper recycling.

Broad-based program

Items that can be recycled include:

• Pure white paper
• Aluminum cans, foil, steel, bi-metal (no liquid)
• Mixed fibers
  • - Colored paper
  • - Envelopes
  • - Phonebooks
  • - Newspapers/magazines/catalogs
  • - Brown paper bags (unsoiled)
• Glass
• Corrugated cardboard
• Plastic labeled 1, 2, 3 and 5
• Plastic bottles labeled 1, 2, 3 and 5 (no liquid, caps removed)
• Ink and toner cartridges

The department of occupational and environmental services also is assisting with the recycling of fluorescent light bulbs, computers, batteries, paint and other materials.

“We’re trying to make this as broad based as possible,” Matthews explained.

As far as the goals for the program, Matthews said the university is aiming to recycle 30 percent of total waste annually, and that “every year we’ll want to improve.” According to Case’s recycling team, the state’s goal for municipality recycling is 25 percent of the total waste stream.

Woolf said another goal of the recycling program is to get as much revenue generated through recycling as possible.

“That means doing research, because the market for the commodities changes quickly. By increased recycling we will increase our waste stream diversion rate, which will reduce hauling to the landfill,” Woolf said. “It’s the socially conscious thing to do for the environment, and people also look at the bottom line. We can try to find a good balance between the two agendas.”

About Case Western Reserve University

Case is among the nation's leading research institutions. Founded in 1826 and shaped by the unique merger of the Case Institute of Technology and Western Reserve University, Case is distinguished by its strengths in education, research, service, and experiential learning. Located in Cleveland, Case offers nationally recognized programs in the Arts and Sciences, Dental Medicine, Engineering, Law, Management, Medicine, Nursing, and Social Work. http://www.case.edu.