Environmental Concerns Committee

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The ECC is a group dedicated to promoting and improving recycling at the University of Delaware.

Our current projects/programs include:

 Promoting RecycleMania - 2007 was UD's first year participating in RecycleMania, a nation-wide competition among college campuses to see who can recycle the most.  This year's RecycleMania runs from January 27-April 5, 2008.  You can join the facebook group (RecycleMania UD!).

Dining Services "Green Team" - designed to help educate the student population about how their eating habits and dining services as a while can assist in making the university more environmentally aware.  Check out Dining Services Sustainability 

Collecting used ink cartridges & cell phones through US Recycling 

ALD Highway cleanup once a semester 

Promoting America Recycles Day - Nov. 15 

Participating in Ag Day in the Spring 

Participating in Students for the Environment (S4E)'s Greenfest - Saturday, May 17th, 2008

 Fundraiser:  Selling t-shirts made out of recycled plastic bottles  (note:  this is our old t-shirt; we only have a few XL's left.  Our new shirt has the logo above on the front - green writing on a white t-shirt.  It is being distributed through the Dining Services "Green Team.")  

Fliers encouraging students to recycle

Improving recycling on campus

Our past projects/programs include:

 Trash and Dash 

 Speech by Michael Sarasin, director of Ricoh Corporation's  Corporate Quality Assurance and Environmental Management Division

Coming up with recycling info. materials for RA's to put on bulletin boards

Ideas for future projects/programs include:

Getting a member to join the Senior Class Gift Committee to work on Greening the University. 

Getting the school to use stickers on paper towel dispensers etc.

 Getting information out about recycling options for off-campus students (see DSWA for how to get curbside recycling or for DSWA recycling center locations) 

Trying to get the school to use only recycled paper

Working alongside other groups such as Students for the Environment (which is working on an alternative energy campaign)

Other Websites to check out: 

  What are they waiting for? TOP reporters are ignoring the issues on climate crisis. Check this website out and you can sign the petition to get more political reporters pushing the issue. http://www.whataretheywaitingfor.com/sign.php

http://ag.udel.edu/RECYCLE/Web/indexnewrechome.html

Information compiled by Peter Mares Harrington A/B Hall Director 2007-2008


Recycling Myths

• The University doesn’t recycle

Many residents think that the University of Delaware doesn’t actually recycle and we just throw everything away.  Some of their reasoning for this is that they see people put the recycling in dump-trucks, another reason is that people continually spread this rumor year to year.

All materials collected by the campus recycling program are taken directly to Recycle America, located in Wilmington, & Newark Recycling here in Newark.  The materials these vendors handle are; cardboard (OCC),  and office paper (OWP) in the case of Recycle America; and all metals (steel, tin, and aluminum cans) to Newark Recycling.  Newsprint (ONP) and plastics are hauled to containers on campus for collection and recycling by the State of Delaware's Recycle Now program at no expense to the UD.  Glass is collected by my staff and placed in another container for collection by Allied Waste for recycling at a charge back to us.  Last FY we recycled approx. 531 tons or 17.7% of the campus waste stream. 

As to the other part of the myth, the University collects recycling using three types of vehicles; a spare refuse collection truck which picks up OCC, a stake body which collects OWP, ONP, metals, glass & plastics and a pickup truck which does the same.  So it may look like a garbage truck but it actually is going to a recycling center.

• If someone puts trash in they throw the whole bag out

I’ve heard on numerous occasions that if someone puts something that can’t be recycled or trash in a bin then they have to throw the whole bag out.  When you think about this logically it doesn’t even make sense.  The only way they would know that something didn’t belong was if they went through the recyclables and checked to see if something wasn’t recyclable; this being the case why wouldn’t they just throw out the item that isn’t recyclable? Well, that is exactly what happens.  Recycling isn’t a completely automated process. 
While each recycling center uses different technology based on how new the facility has there are many common trends in methods that facilities use to sort recycling.  This is one of the reasons that in some places all recycling is just lumped into one or two bins.

The first step in almost any recycling center involves laying the items out on a conveyor belt and having a picking line manually remove items that can’t be recycled.  From there the items go through a variety of separation methods.  Some of these involve revolving cylinders with holes to trap bottles and cans, high power magnets, and high speed conveyor belts to separate heavier materials like glass. In addition when actually making something out of all the recycled materials, they can utilize liquids with different densities to separate non recyclable things like the labels on bottles and small pieces will be melted into the new plastic.

Does this mean I should just throw everything away?  NO!  Recycling only what can be recycled will reduce labor costs from the manual sorting process.  This will have a ripple effect and reduce the price that they sell the materials to business and encourage more business to take advantage of recycled materials.  

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What to recycle

Paper

What to recycle: Newspapers, magazines, phone books, newspaper inserts and paperback books.

How to prep the materials: Drop in loose. Inserts may stay in.

What you can’t recycle: Junk mail, office paper, hard cover books, plastic bags or wrappers, cereal boxes, cardboard, or tissue boxes.

Some things that will be made from the recyclables: New newsprint, box board liners and egg cartons.

Junk Mail and Office Paper (Off Campus Only)

Located at:
190 Salem Church Road
Christiana, DE 19713
-OR-
Rt. 273 and Rt. 1
Christiana, DE 19701

What to recycle: Magazines, catalogs, advertisements, glossy color inserts, pastel/white envelopes, undeliverable mail, sweepstakes forms, school paper, office paper, computer paper.

How to prep the materials: Drop in loose. Inserts may stay in.

Some things that will be made from the recyclables: Newsprint, cardboard, chipboard, paperback books, brown paper bags, telephone books, blueprints, carbon paper, goldenrod/stilbene envelopes, colored/kraft folders, cafeteria & washroom waste.

Plastic

What to recycle: Narrow-neck plastic bottles only (milk jugs, soda bottles, laundry detergent, salad dressing, cooking oil, shampoo, cleaning bottles).

How to prep the materials: Rinse lightly. Remove lids and crush. Labels and rings can stay on.

What you can’t recycle: Plastic bags, margarine or yogurt containers, plastic trays, cups, Styrofoam, motor oil bottles, pesticide or solvent containers.

Some things that will be made from the recyclables: New plastic containers, carpet fiber backing.

Cans / Aluminum

What to recycle: Aluminum, steel and empty aerosol cans (drink and food cans, pet food, hair and bug spray).

How to prep the materials: Rinse lightly. Crush if possible. Labels can stay on. Remove plastic spray knob from aerosols.

What you can’t recycle: Foil or pie trays, paint cans, propane cylinders, siding, beach or lawn chairs.

Some things that will be made from the recyclables: New steel products and aluminum cans.

Glass

What to recycle: Food and beverage containers, jars.

How to prep the materials: Rinse lightly. Remove lids. Label and ring can stay on.

What you can’t recycle: Window glass, drinking glasses, mirrors, ceramics, crystal, fluorescent and incandescent bulbs, Corning Ware, Pyrex

Some things that will be made from the recyclables: New glass containers of the same color, and used as an aggregate in glassphalt.

Batteries

What to recycle: Small household batteries and button type (A's, C's, D's, watch, hearing aide and camera).

What you can’t recycle: Car, motorcycle or lantern batteries.

Note: At this time the State of Delaware doesn’t recycle batteries, they only collect and store them where they won’t harm the environment.

Suggestions are always welcome!

Contact Kelly at kmoltzen@udel.edu for more information, with any suggestions, or to be added to the mailing list.