| Overall Rating | Silver |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 63.17 |
| Liaison | Carly Thibodeau |
| Submission Date | Aug. 21, 2023 |
Endicott College
OP-18: Waste Minimization and Diversion
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
5.46 / 8.00 |
Carly
Thibodeau Associate Director of Sustainability Office of Sustainability |
Figures needed to determine total waste generated (and diverted):
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Materials recycled | 150.40 Tons | 0 Tons |
| Materials composted | 142.50 Tons | 0 Tons |
| Materials donated or re-sold | 9.58 Tons | 0 Tons |
| Materials disposed through post-recycling residual conversion | 0 Tons | 0 Tons |
| Materials disposed in a solid waste landfill or incinerator | 396.98 Tons | 1,800 Tons |
| Total waste generated | 699.46 Tons | 1,800 Tons |
A brief description of the residual conversion facility:
Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):
| Start Date | End Date | |
| Performance Period | July 1, 2021 | June 30, 2022 |
| Baseline Period | July 1, 2008 | June 30, 2009 |
A brief description of when and why the waste generation baseline was adopted:
This is the first year for which we have reliable data. The recycling program was started in 2008.
Figures needed to determine "Weighted Campus Users”:
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Number of students resident on-site | 2,596 | 1,800 |
| Number of employees resident on-site | 13 | 10 |
| Number of other individuals resident on-site | 1 | 0 |
| Total full-time equivalent student enrollment | 4,170 | 2,500 |
| Full-time equivalent of employees | 709 | 385 |
| Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education | 1,126 | 0 |
| Weighted campus users | 3,468 | 2,616.25 |
Total waste generated per weighted campus user:
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Total waste generated per weighted campus user | 0.20 Tons | 0.69 Tons |
Percentage reduction in total waste generated per weighted campus user from baseline:
Percentage of materials diverted from the landfill or incinerator by recycling, composting, donating or re-selling, performance year:
Percentage of materials diverted from the landfill or incinerator (including up to 10 percent attributable to post-recycling residual conversion):
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 |
| Electronics | 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) | Yes |
A brief description of other materials the institution has recycled, composted, donated and/or re-sold:
Books, mattresses, plastic film, textiles
Materials intended for disposal but subsequently recovered and reused on campus, performance year:
Does the institution use single stream recycling to collect standard recyclables in common areas?:
Does the institution use dual stream recycling to collect standard recyclables in common areas?:
Does the institution use multi-stream recycling to collect standard recyclables in common areas?:
Average contamination rate for the institution’s recycling program:
A brief description of any recycling quality control mechanisms employed:
The Sustainability Coordinator conducts ongoing analysis of recycling contamination and dumpster overage occurrences.
Facilities personnel have been trained to deal with contamination and remove contaminating material from the recycling dumpsters when they find it.
Multiple behavior change campaigns and surveys have been created to communicate changes in the recycling industry to students.
The Office of Sustainability created universal waste signage to inform students, staff, and guests about what goes in the trash, recycling, and compost bins.
A brief description of the institution's waste-related behavior change initiatives:
The College participates in the annual Campus Race to Zero Waste (formerly RecycleMania) competition every February and March, during which we host multiple waste-related events such as a Game Day Recycling Challenge at a home basketball game and a campus Thrift Store. Other events include waste diversion competitions between residence halls on campus and participating faculty/staff offices. The College also developed universal waste signage that was rolled out during 2022 for the entire campus and have been working to standardize all waste bins for size, color, and signage to improve communication.
A brief description of the institution's waste audits and other initiatives to assess its materials management efforts and identify areas for improvement:
Trash, recycling, and food waste is tracked first-hand 3x a week during Campus Race to Zero Waste. We have also done multiple waste audits with environmental science students and visiting camps, as well as with our waste hauler to determine areas for improvement. In the audits we sort the materials from trash and recycling dumpsters outside of a residence hall and our dining hall, or randomly selected bags of trash/recycling from across campus.
A Solid Waste Annual Report is completed yearly to evaluate the current status of waste management on campus; in this document the Sustainability Coordinator tracks recycling contamination and dumpster overage occurrences. Waste bin inventories are completed periodically.
A brief description of the institution's procurement policies designed to prevent waste:
We purchase all toilet paper, paper towels and other custodial supplies in bulk. The following statements are included in the College's Purchasing Guidelines:
- Minimize the consumption of non-replaceable natural resources
- Minimize waste from packaging materials and waste generated by the eventual disposal of the product
- Maximize the reuse and recyclability of materials
- Avoid the purchase of polystyrene (Styrofoam)
- Durable, long lasting, reusable or refillable products are always preferred when feasible
- Packaging should be reusable, recyclable or compostable, if possible
- Request vendors review the manner in which their goods are packaged, and work with them in the areas of reduction, reuse and recyclability of packaging materials
- Consolidate orders to minimize campus deliveries and transportation distances when possible
- When possible, vendors should be encouraged to remove waste, debris, packaging or used products in the same vehicle with which they are delivering purchased equipment or goods
- Reuse and/or recycle packaging materials and pallets on campus
A brief description of the institution's surplus department or formal office supplies exchange program that facilitates reuse of materials:
We host several Office FreeCycle tables/little free libraries across campus where members of the community can bring office supplies, home items, toys, clothing, etc. to a central location so that others can "shop" the materials in a free store.
Community Service/Sustainability allows Endicott students, staff, and faculty to browse through donation items collected during move-out every year. Community service sets aside specific material for international students such as lamps, shelving, linens, etc.
Our copy center makes notepads out of recycled paper that are available to faculty, staff and students.
A brief description of the institution's platforms to encourage peer-to-peer exchange and reuse:
We host several Office FreeCycle tables/little free libraries across campus where members of the community can bring office supplies, home items, toys, clothing, etc. to a central location so that others can "shop" the materials in a free store.
Community Service/Sustainability allows Endicott students, staff, and faculty to browse through donation items collected during move-out every year. Community service sets aside specific material for international students such as lamps, shelving, linens, etc.
Faculty often coordinate their own book-exchange platforms.
A brief description of the institution's limits on paper and ink consumption:
Students pay to print at all locations on campus.
Double-sided printing is the default setting for Endicott-owned computers. Offices are encouraged to print double sided and on recycled paper whenever possible.
A brief description of the institution's initiatives to make materials available online by default rather than printing them:
Our directory, course catalog and course schedules are all available online. We also offer full online courses and use an online interface (Canvas) where students are able to access course materials, submit papers, download articles and have discussions on topics.
The Communications and Marketing Department has made College publications (magazine, "Facts and Figures", etc.) available online.
A brief description of the institution's program to reduce residence hall move-in/move-out waste:
Every residence hall has donation bins/areas located in the main lobby during move-out. Items collected include clothing, non-perishables, toiletries, books and school supplies, working appliances, furniture, etc. Community Service and the Office of Sustainability work together to collect, sort, and transport these items to local charities. This initiative supported the diversion of over 8,000 lbs of items from the landfill that were donated to Savers and local community organizations. There are also Cradles to Crayons and Red Cross clothing/textile collection bins on campus for move-out textile donations.
During move-in, specific dumpsters near each residence hall are designated as "cardboard only" to collect packaging waste, and during 2022 we had waste volunteers on First Year Move-In Day to help facilitate proper waste disposal.
A brief description of the institution's programs or initiatives to recover and reuse other materials intended for disposal:
We have multiple water refill stations located in various buildings on campus that have helped encourage the use of refillable water bottles and reduce the amount of plastic water bottles used on campus.
In addition to the specialty recycling streams captured by the third question of part 3 above, Endicott also diverts books, plastic film, and mattresses for reuse/recycling.
Website URL where information about the institution’s waste minimization and diversion efforts is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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.