Recycling returned to Residence halls

By: Dan Socha

Posted: 10/21/04

"When in doubt, leave it out!" This is the slogan the Environmental Club wants students to keep in mind when using the recycling bins within their residence halls.

Starting last week, the Building and Grounds Department returned 11 recycling bins to various residence halls on campus. Such residence halls include Salisbury, Worcester, Wachusett, West, and the Living Learning Center. However, these recycling bins are for paper only.

The paper recycling bins were first placed within the residence halls last year, but many of them became contaminated when non-recyclable waste was thrown into them. If a certain amount of non-recyclable waste, like pizza boxes or beverage containers, are found within the recycling bins, then the entire contents of the bin become unrecyclable.

Due to the contamination, the Building and Grounds Department removed the recycling bins from the residence halls at the end of last semester. However, by the request of the Assumption Environmental Club, also known as the AC Planateers, the bins were returned under the condition that there would be an educational campaign to prevent the bins from becoming re-contaminated.

The Environmental Club is presently working on public service announcements that will air on ACTV. These announcements will reinforce the message that bins in the residen\ce halls are for paper only. The recycling bins can collect most types of paper including computer paper, construction paper, loose-leaf, envelopes, and magazines. There are posters outlining all the types of paper that can be recycled hung next to each of the bins within the residence halls.

Most importantly, the bins are able to collect newspapers. As part of the Readership program, the College receives hundreds of copies of four major newspapers during the week. The newspapers include The New York Times, The Boston Globe, USA Today, and The Worcester Telegram and Gazette. These newspapers can all be recycled at the bins in the residence halls. The Environmental Club has posted banners above the newspaper racks reminding residents to "Recycle your newspaper."

Residents last year may have confused the recycling bins with bins that can collect all recyclable material, but this is not the case. Even though waste like aluminum cans or glass bottles are recyclable, they cannot be collected with the recycling bins that are in the residence halls. The Environmental Club has encouraged residents to collect those bottles and cans that are recyclable and bring them to the bottle and can recycle bin in Charlie's. The Environmental Club plans to expand the bottle and can recycling into the residence halls, but as of right now they are very focused on the success of the paper-recycling program. The next meeting of the Environmental Club will take place today, October 20th, at 5:30 pm in the Student Activities room. All are welcome to attend.

Daniel Socha

History