Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 48.57
Liaison Jennifer McMillin
Submission Date June 15, 2017
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

Cleveland State University
OP-19: Waste Minimization and Diversion

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 2.91 / 8.00 Jennifer McMillin
Director of Sustainability
Facilities l Architect l Safety l Technology
"---" 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 292.53 Tons 265.36 Tons
Materials composted 1.50 Tons 0 Tons
Materials donated or re-sold 1 Tons 1 Tons
Materials disposed through post-recycling residual conversion 0 Tons 0 Tons
Materials disposed in a solid waste landfill or incinerator 947.64 Tons 948.74 Tons
Total waste generated 1,242.67 Tons 1,215.10 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, 2016 Dec. 31, 2016
Baseline Year Jan. 1, 2015 Dec. 31, 2015

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 1,010 1,010
Number of employees resident on-site 0 0
Number of other individuals resident on-site and/or staffed hospital beds 0 0
Total full-time equivalent student enrollment 13,947 13,571
Full-time equivalent of employees (staff + faculty) 1,867 1,804
Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education 429 0
Weighted campus users 11,791.25 11,783.75

Total waste generated per weighted campus user:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Total waste generated per weighted campus user 0.11 Tons 0.10 Tons

Percentage reduction in total waste generated per weighted campus user from baseline:
0

Part 3: Waste Diversion

Percentage of materials diverted from the landfill or incinerator by recycling, composting, donating or re-selling, performance year:
23.74

Percentage of materials diverted from the landfill or incinerator (including up to 10 percent attributable to post-recycling residual conversion):
23.74

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 Yes
Cooking oil Yes
Plant materials Yes
Animal bedding No
White goods (i.e. appliances) Yes
Laboratory equipment No
Furniture Yes
Residence hall move-in/move-out waste Yes
Scrap metal Yes
Pallets Yes
Tires Yes
Other (please specify below) Yes

A brief description of other materials the institution has recycled, composted, donated and/or re-sold:
Waste streams currently collected on campus include plastic and cans, cardboard, mixed office paper, Styrofoam, shrink wrap, steel, tires, yard waste, computers and electronics, ink cartridges, batteries, motor oil, antifreeze, ballasts and fluorescent bulbs.

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?:
No

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?:
No

Contamination and Discard Rates 

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

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:
Recyclable materials are collected on campus by custodial staff in color coded bags. All waste receptacles use gray plastic bags and all recycling receptacles (bottles/cans/paper) use white bags. Custodians ensure that white bags are deposited in a designated recycling cart in each building. Once custodial staff have placed the bags of recycled materials in the designated area, recycling staff make rounds on campus to collect recyclable materials and move them to a central facility. There, staff separate recyclable materials into single streams (cans, plastic, paper, cardboard) to ensure a contamination free material stream. This result is verified by our recycling service provider.

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:
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A brief description of the institution's waste audits and other initiatives to assess its materials management efforts and identify areas for improvement:
Annual reporting to the Cuyahoga County Solid Waste District on total amounts of recycled materials has led to a better understanding of waste streams generated on the CSU campus.

A brief description of the institution's procurement policies designed to prevent waste (e.g. by minimizing packaging and purchasing in bulk):
All custodial supplies including cleaning products and paper products are centrally purchased in bulk to service the needs of the entire campus and reduce packaging waste.

A brief description of the institution's surplus department or formal office supplies exchange program that facilitates reuse of materials:
CSU's Property Control department is responsible for recording and accounting for the university's nearly $51 million in property, including salvage, reuse, sale, recycling and disposal. Property is routinely re-used internally and if that is not possible, items are recycled, sold by competitive bid to outside parties or otherwise destroyed. https://www.csuohio.edu/controllers-office/property-control

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):
In 2016, Information Services and Technology (IS&T) initiated a recycling program which offers refurbished PCs as an alternative to new desktop units. The campus bookstore, Viking Outfitters, offers used textbooks and book rental options, and they offer a textbook buy-back program. The library offers a selection of print textbooks required for some of the larger general education classes and students with a valid VikingCard may borrow these textbooks to use in the Library for a two hour loan period. In addition to the print textbooks, the library offers some eTextbooks which are digital versions of books required for classes.

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):
Limited free printing is provided to every student (2,000 black and white pages or 160 color pages per semester). The 2,000 page allocation is refreshed at the end of each semester. Unused printing is NOT carried over to the following semester. https://www.csuohio.edu/computer-labs/lab-printing As part of CSU's Campus Wide Energy Conservation and Management Program, a Managed Print Services (MPS) program was adopted. By reducing printing consumables, the program: - Reduces energy consumption, emission levels and solid waste. - Achieves NE Ohio Collaboration and Innovation Commission recommendation to centralize the print management function. - Fulfills Governor Strickland's Executive Order 2007-02S which establishes a strategic vision for State of Ohio supported institutions and agencies to reduce energy consumption, improve energy efficiency and adopt advanced energy utilization technologies. https://www.csuohio.edu/printing/managed-printer-services-program-procedures

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:
Undergraduate and graduate catalogs are available online http://catalog.csuohio.edu/index.php Online courses http://online.csuohio.edu/online_course_catalog.html Electronic course reserves http://researchguides.csuohio.edu/er.php The Access Control Department transitioned to paperless access request forms in 2016.

A brief description of the institution's program to reduce residence hall move-in/move-out waste:
In 2016, a Graduate Social work student serving in the Student Government Association as a Graduate College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences Senator initiated a project to collect donations from students moving out of the residence halls. Boxes were placed in the lobbies of the two campus residences to collect usable goods for donation to a local charity. Students donated their leftover (unopened) canned goods, toiletries, and hygiene products to the campus food bank, Lift Up Vikes. Additionally, cookware, small appliances, pillows, bedding, lamps, clothing, and other items were donated to Salvation Army's Habor Light complex, which offers a home to uninsured and under-insured individuals with substance-use disorders to assist them to rehabilitate and reintegrate into society.

A brief description of the institution's programs or initiatives to recover and reuse other materials intended for disposal:
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The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
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Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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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.