Intended to increase the separation of trash and recyclables, individual recycling containers are located throughout most of campus. If recycling bins contain too many non-recyclable items, the entire load is rejected and all of its contents is sent to the landfill.
Dining areas, residence halls, office spaces and classrooms are the easiest locations for students and faculty to properly recycle waste, according to Ball State’s Facilities Planning and Management.
Mike Planton, associate director for landscape and environmental management at Ball State, encourages people on-campus to pay attention to recycling habits.
“Students create a large amount of the trash and recycling on campus,” Planton said. “Many times we find both trash and recycling containers contaminated and therefore must throw all of it away.”
Ball State recycles using a co-mingled system, meaning any mixture of recyclables can be placed into the same bin with no additional sorting. Materials that are co-mingled for recycling must all be recyclable, and there are no exceptions in the process that allow for later separation. Mixing recyclables and non-recyclables at the beginning means full rejection of the bin at the end.
“When we recycle the way we’re supposed to, we’re helping to improve our university and our community,” Planton said.
Students living in residence halls are especially encouraged to participate in recycling programs hosted by Ball State’s Housing and Residence Life. When throwing trash away from a room, separate paper, plastic, glass or metal items and place them in the marked recycling boxes inside the residence hall’s trash areas.
“Items that still contain liquid will not be accepted for recycling,” Planton said. “Recyclables need to be emptied before being placed in the appropriate disposal container.”
For more hazardous or less-common recyclable items that do not fit the on-campus criteria, the Muncie Sanitary Department offers recycling services for additional items through the Blue Bag Recycling Program.
The blue bags allow Muncie residents to place any recyclable item such as paper, glass and plastic into bags that can be thrown into trash containers for trash pickup. Although some off-campus commuters may already have automatic pickup, other residents can request weekly recycling pickup through the City of Muncie, and frequent drop-off sites are open throughout the year at varying locations.
Contact the Muncie Sanitary Services at 765-747-4863 with comments, concerns or requests for special trash and recyclable pick-ups. Visit www.munciesanitary.org for more information about local recycling and Muncie Sanitary District’s sustainability efforts.
GRAPHIC BY ZACH POOR
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This article is part of the Campus Green Guide, a free custom publication of Ball State Unified Media.
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