Green Corner: Recycle green habits

Did you know that Rider participates in single stream recycling? Single stream recycling, or co-mingled, “is a recycling process in which materials are collected all together with no sorting required by individual recyclers,” according to the Delaware Solid Waste Authority’s website, dswa.com. Basically, what this means for you is that you are able to toss your cans, cardboard, and soda bottles all together in one bucket, adding convenience and ease. According to Waste Managment’s website, wm.com, single stream recycling processes have “been shown to increase recycling rates an average of 30%.”
Every county differs, but here at Rider we accept a variety of items including mixed office paper, cardboard, glass jars and bottles, aluminum cans, juice boxes/cartons and plastic types 1-7.
One of the many eco-friendly programs that Rider is proud of is the e-waste recycling program. In every residence hall, there is a green bucket labeled “techno-trash” for students to properly dispose of their electronic waste. The types of items being collected include diskettes, zip disks, CD-Rs, CD-RWs, DVDs, video tapes (VHS), audiotapes and game cartridges. We are also collecting used printer cartridges, including inkjet and toner. This program offers a way to throw out products that would otherwise build up in landfills. The information stored on all media is securely destroyed.
Reuse is the most efficient form of recycling; if the items cannot be reused because of age, wear or economic reasons, the material is broken down to its raw components and recycled. The company that receives the techno-trash ensures all recycling processes meet or exceed governmental regulations and minimize the environmental impact as much as possible. No hazardous materials are sent outside the country and 99% of all material they receive is either reused or recycled.
You may have noticed one of our newer recycling centers on campus, The Pepsi Dream Machine. The Dream Machine allows anyone to recycle bottles and cans in return for points. The first time you recycle, the machine supplies you with a key tag card that gives you an account to track your points. Once you gather up enough, you can then cash them in for coupon prizes at pepsicorecycling.com.
Both the Lawrenceville and Westminster campuses will be celebrating “America Recycles Day” on Nov. 15. The Lawrenceville campus event will be held in the Student Recreation Center lobby from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. and the Westminster campus event will be held from 12:30. to 1 p.m. inside the Student Center. America Recycles Day is an opportunity to celebrate good recycling habits and to spread awareness of the many materials that can be easily recycled. According to americarecyclesday.org, more than 46,000 people have already signed the pledge to recycle more in honor of this year’s holiday. You can join the crowd by visiting the website, where you can also find plenty of information on recycling centers as well as what can and cannot be recycled. Of course you can also visit our America Recycles Day events this Friday for more information on recycling at Rider, plus fun games and great prizes.
-Stephanie Eppolito
Lawrenceville Eco-Rep
Printed in the 11/13/13 edition.