Carleton University
OP-22: Waste Minimization

The waste generation baseline was adopted as it represented the first full year where full waste data was received from our waste contractor. In addition waste audits were conducted from this baseline year.

In 2014, for the second successive year, Carleton diverted from landfill 61% of its waste. The university collecting over 2,300 metric tonnes of waste (non-hazardous). Of this 918 tonnes was sent to landfill and 1417 tones was recycled, which included mixed paper recycling (578 mt), Plastics, Metal and Glass (320 mt), Wood (20 mt) and Organic compost waste (213 mt).

Carleton university has in place a formal Surplus Sales list. This list enables all staff and faculty to advertise (at cost or for free) merchandise or goods that are no longer required by that department. In addition Carleton has signed up to mycampuswall.com (An online website to advertise goods) to enable the exhange/sale of goods across departments.

- professors are instructed not to print out any class assignments or syllabus's for handout, and instead, are instructed to make copies of all course outlines and assignments available through cuLearn, the online learning environment that Carleton University uses. cuLearn becomes an extension of the classroom space. -many professors and teaching staff will use textbooks that are available online, or on reserve at the library, in order to both save costs for the students and minimize paper waste.

Free-printing is restricted to specific faculties at their discretion, whereas public printers available in common areas, such as main floors of academic buildings, residence commons and the library, are charged per page and charged extra for colour printing.

The Sustainability Team at Move-in - Move-in weekend is attended by a team made up of students and staff who want to make a environmentally friendly impact on move-in weekends. This team circulates residence looking for waste that can be diverted, specifically cardboard waste, as that is the most common during move-in and unpacking. Sustainability Bulletin Boards - bulletin boards with waste and energy reduction information will be posted on every single floor of every residence building prior to students moving in, so that during Move-In, and the remainder of the school year, the students are getting a visual every time they step onto their floor, about how they can be diverting and minimizing waste. Sustainability Toolkit - before students even move into residence, all incoming students are to be sent a "Sustainability Tool kit", which is an online pamphlet outlining how to live, eat, shop and divert waste in a sustainable manner. The tool kit serves to teach students about sustainable practices and routines on campus, in the hopes that they will begin to divert their waste immediately on campus. For example, separating their move in waste into the proper streams of recycling available. Using the waste bins provided in their rooms appropriately, etc. Move- Out -large donation bins are available on residence grounds during the move-out period and students are encouraged to donate household items, clothing and other miscellaneous items from their dorms they wish to get rid of. This diverts textile waste, as well as household waste, from going to landfills.

Food waste audits are the end result of the pre-consumer food waste reduction programs and practices. Food waste audits include following through all steps in the food waste reduction process and are included as part of our larger food management audit process to ensure that food waste reduction programs and practices are being implemented at all Aramark-managed Carleton University operations.

Our food waste reduction program is embedded into our food management process and includes staff training around expected and/or preventable (i.e. trimmings, over-production) food waste, and clear bins and scales to weigh and track waste (while also making our staff more mindful of food waste). The food management process also includes practices such as product labeling and storing to ensure first-in/first-out practices are being followed. Food waste bins are observed by management regularly before being discarded to identify and act on opportunities to reduce waste. The tracked waste is entered into an online reporting system that provides a food waste dashboard that is monitored and used to provide valuable training feedback to reduce pre-consumer waste through enhancing both awareness of waste and for training staff around practical techniques for reducing waste through production planning and efficient culinary practices. *Trimmings can be both expected and preventable (over-trimming). We don’t consider leftovers waste because we use them again. Pre-consumer food waste is separated in all Aramark-managed kitchens and diverted to compost bins, which are then composted in Carleton’s on-site in-vessel composter processing up to 600lbs of food waste per day (takes a full 21 hours to process 600lbs of compost) and currently operating at maximum capacity.

Aramark managed operations have implemented trayless dining to reduce food waste and reduce water / energy / chemicals used to clean trays. We have also modified menus to reduce portion sizes, particularly in residential dining operations to encourage diners to try smaller amounts of many different dishes and avoid waste from choosing too much food that they can not consume. We also continue to monitor and modify menus on an ongoing basis through our food management and auditing process to make changes to the menu in real-time to reduce post-consumer food waste by substituting unpopular menu choices with items that have greater acceptability. Post-consumer food waste is separated from recycling and traditional waste via “eco-stations” (separating bins or scraping stations) in residential dining locations where students separate food waste into bins that can then be composted by Carleton’s in-vessel composter.

Compostable options are provided for to-go take-out containers, bowls, cutlery, hot beverage cups. Clear plastic take out containers as part of our “express” grab n go program are recyclable PET. Re-usable take-out containers (eco-tainers) will be launched in the fall of 2014.

All Aramark residential and retail operations provide reusable service ware / cutlery (china / stainless steel) as a default unless disposables are requested by the diners (and with the exception of franchise operations where some packaging is dictated by franchise brand standards). Where disposable service ware is offered, compostable options are provided for plates, bowls, cutlery, hot beverage cups, and some take out containers (again with any franchise brand standard exceptions). Clear plastic take out containers as part of our “express” grab n go program are recyclable PET.

We offer “lug a mug” discounts to incent customers to use reusable travel mugs when purchasing a hot beverage (ie. we charge the lower price of a small coffee for any size travel mug).

We separate all recyclables and ensure they are diverted to the appropriate recycling streams at Carleton University. We also promote recycling on campus, partnering with suppliers such as Coca Cola to incorporate directional signage and additional recycling bins for recyclable packaging wherever we can. Aramark has implemented Green Seal certified bio-based cleaning products for daily green cleaning. Products include ware washing, all purpose, glass, floor cleaners, and hand soap. These products do not contain phosphorus, are formulated with environmentally responsible ingredients, and do not contain persistent, bio-accumulative or highly toxic substances.