Contrary to what many students and faculty believe, recyclable items are not separated from non-recyclable items as part of the Collegeís recycling program.
If recyclable items are not placed into a specific recycling dumpster, all items will be sent to a landfill.
With the Collegeís previous recycling service, Landmark Disposal Ltd., dumpsters used to be color-coded to differentiate between recyclables and non-recyclables. Now theyíre all green.
According to the Collegeís new recycling service, Waste Management Inc., located at 116 N. Bauer Rd, recyclable products must be placed in designated recycle dumpsters that are distinguishable by a Waste Management recycling sticker.
Once collected by Waste Management hauling trucks, recyclables are taken to a Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) to be sorted using ìsingle-stream recycling” technology.† With single stream, all contents are loaded onto the main feed conveyor belt and separated through mechanized screens. These materials are then baled and sold to recycling mills where they will be remade into sellable products.
The move from Landmark Disposal to Waste Management, which took place in early July, means that the College can now recycle a much broader range of materials. Media spokesperson Beth Schmucker said that ìWaste Management accepts plastics one through seven,” from polycarbonate to polyethylene polymers.
Waste Management accepts some rarely-recycled materials with resin identification codes three, six and seven. This includes egg cartons and disposable cups and plates.
ìHowever,” Schmucker added, ìa cardboard pizza box, if it has pizza grease all over it, is not recyclable.” Other items not accepted by Waste Management include phone books, light bulbs, styrofoam, plastic grocery bags, Ziploc bags and plasticware.
Operation Specialist Kim Ciavarelli, at the MRF in Oakwood Village, Ohio, explained that, ìthe machinery is not able to do all recyclables.” Plastic grocery bags are easily caught in the conveyor belts and sorting machinery, causing damage to the equipment.
A source of frustration for some students is the lack of dumpsters around campus. Major Account Representative Scott Colvin stated that in ìan attempt to beautify the campus, Waste Management has decided to remove about half of them.” The Collegeís campus simply had too many dumpsters for the amount of waste produced.
Waste Management claims that single-stream recycling is successful because of the simplicity of the process for its customers. However, if the campus has fewer dumpsters and no significant visual difference between the two types, the College will not recycle to its potential.
Waste Management will be giving an open forum to explain these changes in the Collegeís recycling program at the College on Thursday, October at 6:30 p.m. in Lowry pit.
Information about recyclable materials and the single stream process is available at www.wm.com and www.thinkgreen.com.
Readers with questions, comment or specifically looking to take a tour of MRF† can contact Amanda Keith at akeith11@wooster.edu