Is This Recyclable?

 Have you ever wondered why a certain product or material is recyclable in one city but not another? Oftentimes, what you can and cannot recycle depends on your location and the kind of facility processing the recyclables in that area. Recycling facilities are responsible for sorting through waste, baling the material, and selling it to vendors for reuse. Recycling facilities determine what is and isn’t recyclable based on the market for their recyclables and the availability of vendors.

The University of Michigan collaborates with the Western Washtenaw Recycling Authority to provide single stream recycling to the University community. Most of the plastic, paper, cardboard, and metal you use can easily be recycled here on campus, but there are some exceptions...

Glass

Starting January 2016, U-M suspended its glass recycling program and asked the U-M community to not place glass in the mixed recycling bins on campus. While glass is an easily recyclable material, the market for selling recycled glass has diminished in recent years. In response, the Western Washtenaw Recycling Authority suspended its glass recycling program when the only option  for glass was to send it to a landfill.

Wax Coated Cardboard

Wax coated cardboard is typically used for shipping food, because the wax coating repels water and prevents contamination and infestation. Unfortunately, there’s no way to remove the wax from the cardboard. When this material is recycled, it produces a lower quality paper that is prone to breaking. While there are some municipalities that provide outlet for recycled wax coated cardboard, it is not provided at U-M.

Tip: Unsure if a box is wax coated? Try scratching the material, and if you feel the wax, then it's coated, if not, then the material is most likely shiny paperboard, which can be recycled!

Frozen Food Containers In Direct Contact With Frozen Food

Similar to wax coated cardboard, frozen food containers are made from cardboard coated in polyethylene, or a plastic coating. While this plastic coating helps with food storage by repelling water and preventing freezer burn, it cannot be removed from the cardboard to be recycled.

Tip: Ice cream containers and frozen spinach containers should go in the landfill bin.

Biodegradable Plastic

Biodegradable plastic is perhaps the most greenwashed product on the market. Products made from biodegradable plastic cannot be recycled because of structural incompatibilities with all other types of plastic. What’s more, biodegradable plastics cannot be composted either. The term biodegradable is misleading because it implies that the plastic will break down over time, similar to compostables. However, unlike compostable materials, there is no standardized time range for biodegradables to break down in nor is there regulation of product labeling.

Tip: If you’re at a U-M hosted Zero-Waste Event, there’s no need to worry about the quality of plastic. All materials used at these events can be composted!

Knowing which items cannot be recycled on campus can help us reduce recycling contamination. Recycling contamination is the portion of non recyclable materials found in recycling. Reducing contamination helps to prevent unsafe working conditions for sorters, maintain the quality of our recyclables, and prevent damage to machinery.

The new standardized recycling labels on campus are an effort to reduce contamination rates by showing the U-M community exactly what should go into the recycling bin. So if the product you’re trying to recycle is not on the sign, place it in the landfill bin or contact recycle@umich.edu with your questions!

Find a complete list of recyclable materials and recycling outlets at recycle.umich.edu.

2017 Annual Office Supply Reuse Day

This year marks the 5th annual Office Supply Reuse Day hosted by the Waste Reduction and Recycling (WRR) division of the Office of Campus Sustainability at the University of Michigan.

Each spring, WRR asks U-M departments to donate their gently used office supplies to this event. This year, 80 U-M departments donated a garage full of office supplies to be reused by other departments and over 25 non-profit organizations!  

U-M departments and local non-profit organizations are then invited to the Office Supplies Reuse Day, where they can pick up FREE, gently used (and often like-new) office supplies to be used at their workplace or school.

The Office Supply Reuse Day aims to give U-M departments an alternative to recycling or throwing away office supplies that could still be used. By reusing the office supplies the University already has, we can divert waste from landfills and save money, energy, and resources from buying and producing new supplies. This program also supports the University’s sustainability goal to reduce the amount of waste sent to landfills by 40% from 2006 levels by 2025.

In addition to promoting campus sustainability, WRR is dedicated to promoting sustainable practices in the Ann Arbor community. By opening up this event to local non-profits, these organizations can operate more sustainably and can avoid the burden of purchasing new office supplies at a cost to their organization. Much of the reused office supplies goes towards filling elementary school classrooms with binders, paper, and more!

While the WRR expects to continue offering the Office Supply Reuse Day, the hope is that the program will no longer be needed as U-M departments learn how to make their offices more sustainable by finding ways to reduce the amount of excess office supplies.

Check out recycle.umich.edu for more sustainability programs offered by WRR!

2017 Winter Semester Wrap Up: 1178 Tons Recycled!

From national recycling competitions, to Rufus’ Instagram debut, Waste Reduction and Recycling has had a busy Winter 2017 semester.

Waste profile

In total, U-M recycled 2,356,170 pounds throughout the winter semester. That’s equivalent to 1178 tons of paper, cardboard, plastic, and metal! We also composted 551,420 pounds (276 tons) of food waste and compostable material from the dining halls and select cafes on campus. 2,356,170 pounds (1857 tons) of waste were sent to landfills.

Bin Standardization

The Waste Reduction and Recycling division of the Office of Campus Sustainability is dedicated to lowering the amount of refuse sent to landfills. To improve campus recycling, Waste Reduction and Recycling is in the process of installing new recycling and landfill signs and bins in U-M buildings. The new signs use graphics to easily answer the question, “Can I recycle this?”

The following U-M buildings received new recycling and landfill labels, signs, bins or a combination of these since the start of the 2017 Winter semester:

• 

  Duderstadt Center
• Michigan League
• Michigan Union
• Hutchins Hall
• Haven Hall
• Mason Hall
• Shapiro Library
• Hatcher Library
• Fleming Administration Building
• Golf Course Club House
• Angell Hall
• Tisch Hall
• Bentley Historical Library

Recyclemania

If you follow Planet Blue, the home of all things sustainability at U-M, on Facebook and Twitter, you’ve probably heard about the 10 week national recycling competition, Recyclemania. This year, U-M recycled 1,363,940 pounds, ranking us 3rd in the nation for total recycling among universities. Our competition recycling rate was 45.46%, placing us in the top third of universities.

Rufus in the spotlight

This April, the UMich Instagram story featured everyone’s favorite recycling mascot to promote waste reduction and recycling efforts on campus. Don’t worry if you missed the Insta’ action! Lucky for you we have the adorable and informative footage of Rufus the Recycler saved on YouTube.

Spring move-out

As a finale to another great semester of waste reduction and recycling efforts, U-M provided spring move-out Donation Stations to the Residence Halls. This program asked students moving out of the Residence Halls to donate their excess clothing, bedding, nonperishable foods and toiletries, and household items to charity. There were 10.48 tons of total donations collected this year!

What’s next?

The fifth annual Office Supply Reuse Day takes place this June. FREE office supplies collected from U-M departments will be made available for other U-M departments and local nonprofit organizations to take. Find out more information at recycle.umich.edu.

New Recycling, Compost, and Landfill Labels!

Hot off the press and ready for the the Fall 2016 semester, the University of Michigan welcomes the new, standardized waste bin labels!

Why are these new labels so great?

It’s a big world out there, filled with plenty of waste bins. Sometimes it becomes confusing, trying to figure out what goes in each bin. Before the University switched over to single stream recycling, there were bins of all different types: paper, newspaper, plastic, you name it!

There are even relics of these old bins still around campus.

Labels before single stream recycling.

Now, you can place any accepted recyclable into the blue recycling bins on campus, regardless of whether they say “paper only.” Those old labels make things pretty confusing!

So get ready to see more and more of the new Recycling, Compost, and Landfill labels replacing the old ones around campus. You can already find a few newly labeled bins at the Duderstadt Library on North Campus.

Easy to Use

These three new labels will let you know exactly what you should place into the bin. Each label includes images and captions of acceptable materials, so say goodbye to the guess work. If the product you wish to recycle isn’t on the sign, put it in the landfill bin! Plus, all three bins will direct you to our website, www.recycle.umich.edu where you can find loads of information about which materials are accepted as recyclables or compostables at U-M.

Reality Check

The new labels will use the term landfill, which clears up any uncertainty about where products put into that bin will end up in the future. Remember, your trash doesn’t disappear the moment it reaches the bin. The University is dedicated towards reducing the amount of waste it sends to landfills (read more about U-M’s sustainability goals here). To accomplish this waste reduction goal, the entire U-M community needs to see the distinction between sending waste to the landfill rather than recycling or composting facilities.

Minimizing Contamination

The new compost signs also include a popular saying in the waste reduction and recycling world, “when in doubt, throw it out.” While some contamination is allowed in recycling, ZERO contamination is permitted when we send our compostables to the WeCare Organics compost facility. Every single item incorporated into a compost pile must be able break down into a nutrient rich product that can then be used to fertilize gardens and improve soils. Minimizing contamination is a priority when collecting compostables, so if you’re not sure, put it in the landfill bin.

They Look Good

These snazzy new labels will certainly give the waste bins around campus a new look!

So fancy.

So new.

Let's say goodbye to to some well loved, but slightly confusing labels.

BYE!

New Additions to Campus and Upcoming Events

Excited for the new semester to begin? When you get back to campus there are a few changes you’ll want to look for as well as some sustainability events to mark on your calendar!

New to Campus

15 more Water Bottle Refill Stations

4 more gooseneck attachments to water fountains for filling water bottles

More water refill stations in high traffic areas means less plastic bottles thrown out on campus. So make sure to carry a reusable water bottle around and to refill it at one of the many refill stations or water fountains!

Sustainable Living Experience

This fall the Oxford Houses, located just across the street from the Nichols Arboretum, will be home to the University’s first ever Sustainable Living Experience. This residential community will foster environmentally-minded students that will act as sustainability leaders on campus. Students participating in the Sustainable Living Experience will have access to pre- and post-consumer composting at Oxford’s Twigs dining hall as well as fresh fruits and veggies from the onsite garden.

ArborBike | Instagram

ArborBike Stations

Don’t worry if you forgot your bike! ArborBike stations are located across campus with a new location coming to the corner of South Forest and Washtenaw. These bikes can also be returned to any station. They are the perfect solution to getting around campus or town without having to drive or take the bus!

Pop Up Gardens

If you’re out walking or biking the campus, make sure to stop at the various pop-up gardens before the season is over! Growing food locally is a great way to avoid packaging and reduce waste.

Fall Sustainability Events You Shouldn't Miss

M Farmers Market

Purchase fresh fruits and vegetables on Thursday, September 16 and Thursday, October 13 at the M Farmers market on Central Campus and on Thursday, September 29 and Thursday, October 27 on North Campus! Exact locations to be announced. Check here for new information!

EarthFest: Party for the Planet

On Wednesday, September 21 head to the diag for free food, live entertainment, games, and loads of information and fun centered on sustainability for our campus and planet!

Hang Out With Rufus On Campus

Rufus the Recycler will back this fall with his visits to the diag. Spoiler: Rufus is getting an updated look this summer so come prepared for pictures with the most stylish recycler on campus. Dates and times to be announced.