SUMMARY:
Increasing Consumption
In the past few years, Middlebury College's total solid waste has increased annually by between 5 and 10 percent. While much of this can be attributed to the increase in the size of the student body and according increase in faculty and staff, it cannot account for all of the increase. Correcting for total solid waste generated per-person, we still see a 4 to 6 percent increase. This indicates a general trend towards greater consumption on campus.
Waste Breakdown Stable
As a whole, the percentages of solid waste which are recycled, composted and landfilled are remaining fairly constant. Recycling hovers between 30 and 40%, composting accounts for about 25%, and trash is around 35 to 40% of the waste stream. On a per-person basis, recycling increased from FY 95 to FY 96 by about 28%. Composting increased by about 13% from FY 96 to FY 97. Waste decreased in FY 96, but returned to about the same level as FY 95 in FY 97.
| YEAR |
% RECYCLED |
% COMPOSTED |
% TRASH |
|---|
| 94-95 |
32.29% |
26.05% |
41.66% |
| 95-96 |
39.53% |
24.88% |
35.59% |
| 96-97 |
35.23% |
26.68% |
38.09% |
| YEAR |
TONS RECYCLED |
TONS COMPOSTED |
TONS TRASH |
TOTAL SOLID WASTE |
PERCENTAGE INCREASE |
|---|
| 94-95 |
300 |
242 |
387 |
929 |
| 95-96 |
402 |
253 |
362 |
1017 |
9.47% |
| 96-97 |
383 |
290 |
414 |
1087 |
6.88% |
| YEAR |
LBS/ PERSON RECYCLED |
LBS/ PERSON COMPOSTED |
LBS/ PERSON TRASH |
LBS/ PERSON TOTAL |
PERCENTAGE INCREASE |
|---|
| 94-95 |
206.11 |
166.27 |
265.89 |
638.27 |
| 95-96 |
264.47 |
166.45 |
238.16 |
669.08 |
4.83% |
| 96-97 |
248.62 |
188.25 |
268.74 |
705.62 |
5.46% |
(College generated waste. Does not include contractor construction and demolition waste or yard waste)
| Contractors required to recycle? |
Y |
| Landscape debris recycled? |
Y |
| Waste landfilled or incinerated? |
landfilled |
| What materials recycled? |
paper |
| cardboard |
| #1 plastics |
| #2 plastics |
| clear glass |
| colored glass |
| aluminum cans & foil |
| tin |
| steel |
| aerosol cans |
| clothing |
| batteries |
| What materials reused? |
styrofoamª packing |
| mailing envelopes |
| clothing |
| furniture |
| toner cartridges |
| printer ribbons |
| computer discs |
| What materials composted? (dining services only) |
pre-consumer scraps |
| post-consumer scraps |
| waxed paper containers |
| waxed cardboard boxes |
RECOMMENDATIONS:
1. Do a trash-sort. Our recycling and composting rates are very high compared to other institutions, but we do not know what percentages of recyclables and compostables are still being treated as trash. From casual inspection, there is a significant percentage of our trash that could be recycled or composted. In order to target higher collection percentages, we will need to know how much and from what sources.
2. Focus on reduction and reuse. It is obvious that both we as individuals and as an institution are producing more waste on the whole than in past years. In order to turn this trend around, we will need to find ways to reduce the amount of waste produced, through changes in purchasing habits, and promotion of reuse.
3. Maintain recycling and composting percentages. We have achieved a fairly stable level of recycling and composting. Every effort should be made to maintain this level, if not surpass it in the future.
4. Explore further donation opportunities. For materials that cannot be recycled, there are often opportunities for reuse. In the past carpeting has gone to bowling alleys for ball padding and dog shelters for bedding. Other items may be able to find similar new homes.
SOURCES:
Jennifer Hazen - Environmental Coordinator
Norm Cushman - Assistant Director of Facilities Management for Maintenance and Operations
COMPILED BY:
Jennifer Hazen