Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 49.02
Liaison Carolyn Shafer
Submission Date March 6, 2020

STARS v2.2

Pratt Institute
OP-18: Waste Minimization and Diversion

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 5.15 / 8.00 Tony Gelber
Dir. Admin. Sustainability
Facilities/Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Figures needed to determine total waste generated (and diverted):
Performance Year Baseline Year
Materials recycled 367 Tons 1,002 Tons
Materials composted 30 Tons 0 Tons
Materials donated or re-sold 8 Tons 0 Tons
Materials disposed through post-recycling residual conversion 391 Tons 0 Tons
Materials disposed in a solid waste landfill or incinerator 410 Tons 2,339 Tons
Total waste generated 1,206 Tons 3,341 Tons

A brief description of the residual conversion facility:

Pratt waste was transported to a Maspeth, Queens NY Mat'l Recovery Facility where it is sorted into paper, cardboard, plastic, glass, metal and masonry The remainder, cannot be recycled/reused and goes to a waste to energy plant where mat'l is combusted to produce electricity. After the electricity is made the remainder goes to a landfill.
The numbers above reflect the process.


Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):
Start Date End Date
Performance Period Jan. 1, 2018 Dec. 31, 2018
Baseline Period Jan. 1, 2007 Dec. 31, 2007

A brief description of when and why the waste generation baseline was adopted:

This baseline was selected as Pratt joined AASHE and used ICLEI to calculate GHG and also when Pratt joined the NYC Carbon Challenge called the Bloomberg 30/10.
2007 was the beginning of the program.


Figures needed to determine "Weighted Campus Users”:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Number of students resident on-site 1,865 1,489
Number of employees resident on-site 11 85
Number of other individuals resident on-site 0 0
Total full-time equivalent student enrollment 4,461 4,431
Full-time equivalent of employees 1,115 1,300
Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education 0 0
Weighted campus users 4,651 4,691.75

Total waste generated per weighted campus user:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Total waste generated per weighted campus user 0.26 Tons 0.71 Tons

Percentage reduction in total waste generated per weighted campus user from baseline:
63.59

Percentage of materials diverted from the landfill or incinerator by recycling, composting, donating or re-selling, performance year:
33.58

Percentage of materials diverted from the landfill or incinerator (including up to 10 percent attributable to post-recycling residual conversion):
43.58

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 No
Furniture Yes
Residence hall move-in/move-out waste Yes
Scrap metal Yes
Pallets Yes
Tires No
Other (please specify below) Yes

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

Pratt has a GiveTake Program and an end of year Flea for Free Program.
These programs recover usable materials from both the academic waste stream and the Residence Hall waste stream and give them back to Pratt students.
In 2017 we recovered and reused approximately 14,000 # of materials.


Materials intended for disposal but subsequently recovered and reused on campus, performance year:
7 Tons

Does the institution use single stream recycling to collect standard recyclables in common areas?:
No

Does the institution use dual stream recycling to collect standard recyclables in common areas?:
Yes

Does the institution use multi-stream recycling to collect standard recyclables in common areas?:
No

Average contamination rate for the institution’s recycling program:
20

A brief description of any recycling quality control mechanisms employed:

We have a program prior to end of semester exams and crits where the GiveTake student staff place signs and blue bags throughout the campus, adjacent to special bins and marked areas to recover all materials and products that can be reused by students.
The materials, paints, glues, wood, plastic metals etc. are collected and sorted in a GuiveTake shop for all students to use the following semester.
We recovered over 5 tons of materials in 2017.
We also conduct a Residence Hall Flea for Free before the end of the Spring semester where 'flea tables' are set up at several central locations and students exchange anything and everything from art supplies to shoes for their reuse. We estimate that in 2017 we reused about 2 tons of materials.
We estimate we reused about 2 tons of materials in this process.


A brief description of the institution's waste-related behavior change initiatives:

The GiveTake Program and The Flea for Free Programs encourage reuse throughout campus.


A brief description of the institution's waste audits and other initiatives to assess its materials management efforts and identify areas for improvement:

Our solid waste carter estimates by volume and type of trash the campus pick ups and weighs the trucks as they enter the sorting facility.
Weights of all recycle/reuse products are provided on a monthly basis.


A brief description of the institution's procurement policies designed to prevent waste:

We have institute the following:
- cleaning products are purchased in concentrated form so that water is not transported with the products.


A brief description of the institution's surplus department or formal office supplies exchange program that facilitates reuse of materials:

The GiveTake program also takes office supplies and some used electronics for give back to students.


A brief description of the institution's platforms to encourage peer-to-peer exchange and reuse:

We have a service with a book dealer so that text books can be ordered and ready for use based on the number actually used. In addition the company will provide used books instead of new.


A brief description of the institution's limits on paper and ink consumption:
---

A brief description of the institution's initiatives to make materials available online by default rather than printing them:

Almost 100% of the Institute's course catalogs, schedules, directories are on line.


A brief description of the institution's program to reduce residence hall move-in/move-out waste:

As described previously the 'flea for free' event captures and reuses much of the residence hall move out waste.


A brief description of the institution's programs or initiatives to recover and reuse other materials intended for disposal:

Electronic products are handled by an electronics specialty company which attempts to reuse and recycle all parts of the electronic waste stream.


Website URL where information about the institution’s waste minimization and diversion efforts is available:
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Additional documentation to support the submission:
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.