Overall Rating Bronze - expired
Overall Score 34.50
Liaison Susan Kaspari
Submission Date July 17, 2019
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

Central Washington University
OP-19: Waste Minimization and Diversion

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 3.20 / 8.00
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Parts 1 and 2: Waste Minimization 

Figures needed to determine total waste generated (and diverted):
Performance Year Baseline Year
Materials recycled 444.46 Tons 444.46 Tons
Materials composted 40 Tons 40 Tons
Materials donated or re-sold 0 Tons 0 Tons
Materials disposed through post-recycling residual conversion 0 Tons 0 Tons
Materials disposed in a solid waste landfill or incinerator 996.75 Tons 996.75 Tons
Total waste generated 1,481.21 Tons 1,481.21 Tons

If reporting post-recycling residual conversion, provide:

A brief description of the residual conversion facility, including affirmation that materials are sorted prior to conversion to recover recyclables and compostable materials:
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Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):
Start Date End Date
Performance Year Jan. 1, 2018 Dec. 31, 2018
Baseline Year Jan. 1, 2018 Dec. 31, 2018

If end date of the baseline year/period is 2004 or earlier, provide:

A brief description of when and why the waste generation baseline was adopted (e.g. in sustainability plans and policies or in the context of other reporting obligations):
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Figures needed to determine "Weighted Campus Users”:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Number of students resident on-site 2,800 2,700
Number of employees resident on-site 0 0
Number of other individuals resident on-site and/or staffed hospital beds 0.27 0
Total full-time equivalent student enrollment 18,441 18,441
Full-time equivalent of employees (staff + faculty) 1,713 1,713
Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education 1,876 1,876
Weighted campus users 14,408.77 14,383.50

Total waste generated per weighted campus user:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Total waste generated per weighted campus user 0.10 Tons 0.10 Tons

Percentage reduction in total waste generated per weighted campus user from baseline:
0.18

Part 3: Waste Diversion

Percentage of materials diverted from the landfill or incinerator by recycling, composting, donating or re-selling, performance year:
32.71

Percentage of materials diverted from the landfill or incinerator (including up to 10 percent attributable to post-recycling residual conversion):
32.71

In the waste figures reported above, has the institution recycled, composted, donated and/or re-sold the following materials?:
Yes or No
Paper, plastics, glass, metals, and other recyclable containers Yes
Food No
Cooking oil Yes
Plant materials Yes
Animal bedding No
White goods (i.e. appliances) Yes
Laboratory equipment Yes
Furniture Yes
Residence hall move-in/move-out waste Yes
Scrap metal Yes
Pallets Yes
Tires Yes
Other (please specify below) No

A brief description of other materials the institution has recycled, composted, donated and/or re-sold:
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Optional Fields 

Active Recovery and Reuse

Materials intended for disposal but subsequently recovered and reused on campus, performance year (e.g. materials that are actively diverted from the landfill or incinerator and refurbished/repurposed) :
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Recycling Management 

Does the institution use single stream recycling (a single container for commingled recyclables) to collect standard recyclables (i.e. paper, plastic, glass, metals) in common areas?:
Yes

Does the institution use dual stream (two separate containers for recyclables, e.g. one for paper and another for plastic, glass, and metals) to collect standard recyclables (i.e. paper, plastic, glass, metals) in common areas?:
Yes

Does the institution use multi-stream recycling (multiple containers that further separate different types of materials) to collect standard recyclables (i.e. paper, plastic, glass, metals) in common areas?:
Yes

Contamination and Discard Rates 

Average contamination rate for the institution’s recycling program (percentage, 0-100):
10

A brief description of any recycling quality control mechanisms employed, e.g. efforts to minimize contamination and/or monitor the discard rates of the materials recovery facilities and mills to which materials are diverted:
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Programs and Initiatives 

A brief description of the institution's waste-related behavior change initiatives, e.g. initiatives to shift individual attitudes and practices such as signage and competitions:
Sustainability Council has been working with the student body to increase signage across campus. In the resident halls the resident hall management holds competitions for the most weight recycled during a month period. Dining services is in the process of developing a composting program, and is working to reduce single-use items.

A brief description of the institution's waste audits and other initiatives to assess its materials management efforts and identify areas for improvement:
The Campus Sustainability course during spring 2019 conducted a recycling audit in dining to see how many items were recycled correctly (proper items/ not contaminated), and a student improved signage and saw an improvement in proper recycling. More education is needed.

A brief description of the institution's procurement policies designed to prevent waste (e.g. by minimizing packaging and purchasing in bulk):
Dining Services will begin purchasing more reusable and compostable (in conjunction with planned composting program)items, as well as more fresh produce to reduce packaging.

A brief description of the institution's surplus department or formal office supplies exchange program that facilitates reuse of materials:
Central Washington University is required by law to maximize use of all assets and, when we have no further use for them, maximize returns on their sale. We are not allowed to give surplus property away. The Surplus and Asset Management Department is the only CWU department authorized to dispose of surplus property. Our primary role is to ensure the excess property generated by CWU will be handled in a method that both maximizes the return to the University and meets the disposal requirements of the State and Federal governments. https://www.cwu.edu/contracts/surplus-and-asset-management

A brief description of the institution's platforms to encourage peer-to-peer exchange and reuse (e.g. of electronics, furnishings, books and other goods):
All items go to bid for departments before being sent to surplus to be sold to the public.

A brief description of the institution's limits on paper and ink consumption (e.g. restricting free printing and/or mandating doubled-sided printing in libraries and computer labs):
None at this time.

A brief description of the institution's initiatives to make materials (e.g. course catalogs, course schedules, and directories) available online by default rather than printing them:
Academia has made improvements to CWU's online program to allow more content online. At this time most classes are able to keep their content to strickly online with few deviations.

A brief description of the institution's program to reduce residence hall move-in/move-out waste:
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A brief description of the institution's programs or initiatives to recover and reuse other materials intended for disposal:
All items go to bid to departments before being sent to surplus to be sold to the public.

The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
Items that are resold or repurposed are not tracked by weight, so were not entered above. RECYCLING AND LANDFILL DATA: Academic spaces- Land fill data was collected via bills from Waste Management.(167.89 tons) Recycling data was collected internally. Our recycling container gets weighted when it gets picked up by our recycling vendor.(Paper-160tons, Plastic/Aluminum/Glass-60tons, Cardboard-25.6 tons, 320lbs batteries) Residential spaces- Data is collected by the Director Housing Facilities. Landfill data(520.74tons) Recycling data(121tons) Combined contamination rates are less than 10%(Excluding dining) Dining areas- 8 yard recycling bin collected twice weekly; ~25 tons landfill waste per month. COMPOSTED DATA: Grounds calculated 40 tons.

The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.