| Recycling
center pushing to reduce impact of USU's garbage, compete
with best in world
By Jason Sanders
February 27, 2009 | The phenomenon
to "go green" has hit Utah State University,
thanks to the campus's Recycling Center. The center
is an impressive hub for recycling. According to Kevin
Phillips, the center's manager, "600 tons of garbage
is recycled and kept from Logan's landfill"—that's
about 25 percent of the school's waste.
A step inside the center is a step
inside a recycling-lover's heaven. The warehouse contains
several dumpster-sized bins packed full of recyclable
goodies. And skirting those bins are busy workers sorting,
organizing and hauling away the school's waste.
The center welcomes anything recyclable.
Cardboard is its most popular item; according to Phillips,
approximately 120 tons of cardboard were recycled last
year. After cardboard the center brings in 93 tons of
mixed paper, 60 tons of white paper, 60 tons of scrap
metal and 35 tons of glass bottles.
The school saves a great amount of
money recycling, too. Phillips said it costs more than
$60 per ton to throw away garbage at Logan's landfill.
With 600 tons of salvaged waste being recycled annually,
the center is saving the school approximately $36,000
a year. And it reduces USU's environmental impact. For
example, recycling one ton of paper saves approximately
17 fully grown trees.
Recycling at USU is as easy too,
thanks to all the blue bins in place around campus.
And to better utilize these bins, the Recycling Center
recently joined "Recyclemania." It's an international
competition where over 500 schools compete to out-recycle
one another. The competition started in mid-January
and runs until March 28. More than anything else the
center hopes joining the competition will enhance students'
desire to recycle.
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