| Overall Rating | Gold |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 72.36 |
| Liaison | Andrew D'Amico |
| Submission Date | Nov. 13, 2024 |
Princeton University
OP-18: Waste Minimization and Diversion
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
4.97 / 8.00 |
Sarah
Boll Executive Director Office of Sustainability |
Parts 1 and 2. Waste per person
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Materials recycled | 580.72 Tons | 1,370 Tons |
| Materials composted | 805.57 Tons | 830 Tons |
| Materials donated or re-sold | 56.46 Tons | 50 Tons |
| Materials disposed through post-recycling residual conversion | 0 Tons | 0 Tons |
| Materials disposed in a solid waste landfill or incinerator | 2,290.29 Tons | 3,250 Tons |
| Total waste generated | 3,733.04 Tons | 5,500 Tons |
If reporting post-recycling residual conversion, provide:
Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):
| Start Date | End Date | |
| Performance Period | July 1, 2022 | June 30, 2023 |
| Baseline Period | July 1, 2005 | June 30, 2006 |
If end date of the baseline year/period is 2004 or earlier, provide:
The baseline was adopted because this timeframe was prior to the inception of the University’s Sustainability Plan in 2007-2008.
Figures needed to determine "Weighted Campus Users”:
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Number of students resident on-site | 6,767 | 6,111 |
| Number of employees resident on-site | 547 | 474 |
| Number of other individuals resident on-site | 434 | 0 |
| Total full-time equivalent student enrollment | 8,988 | 6,935 |
| Full-time equivalent of employees | 7,379 | 5,400 |
| Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education | 0 | 0 |
| Weighted campus users | 14,537.75 | 10,897.50 |
Total waste generated per weighted campus user:
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Total waste generated per weighted campus user | 0.26 Tons | 0.50 Tons |
Percentage reduction in total waste generated per weighted campus user from baseline:
Part 3. Waste diverted from the landfill or incinerator
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) | No |
A brief description of other materials the institution has recycled, composted, donated and/or re-sold:
Note: "Materials donated" also includes books as well as cooking oil, which is recovered at campus dining locations and sent to Waste Oil Recyclers which reuses it for biofuel production. We also recycle mattresses.
Optional Fields
Active Recovery and Reuse
Recycling Management
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?:
Contamination and Discard Rates
A brief description of any recycling quality control mechanisms employed:
Programs and Initiatives
The University implemented a student’s idea to have resource recovery stations as a zero-waste solution at large campus events such as the annual Facilities Appreciation Cookout. The stations reduce contamination and the amount of waste sent to the landfill by educating attendees about what goes in each bin (recycling, landfill, compost) through informational signage and directions from staffed volunteers. Therefore, the centers make waste more apparent to people on a regular basis, while encouraging them to actively think what materials can be recycled or composted versus landfilled.
Other waste-related behavior change initiatives include: periodic recycling education tabling, study breaks, or presentations hosted by student EcoReps.
A brief description of the institution's waste audits and other initiatives to assess its materials management efforts and identify areas for improvement:
Since 2017, the Office of Sustainability has conducted several waste audits ranging in scale and scope with more planned for the future. The overall goals are to understand and improve the University’s waste composition, diversion, and contamination rates.
A brief description of the institution's procurement policies designed to prevent waste:
In 2017, the University transitioned to a new campus-wide copier program. Using new multifunctional devices is less costly than printing to a local desktop or network printer and reduces the amount of used toner cartridges entering the waste stream.
All parts of the toner cartridges and waste toner cartridges are 100% recyclable and can be placed in regular office recycling.
Princeton uses reusable boxes for supply deliveries from our office supply supplier.
A brief description of the institution's surplus department or formal office supplies exchange program that facilitates reuse of materials:
Please find the description of the University's Resource Recovery program here: https://facilities.princeton.edu/services/resource-recovery-program
A brief description of the institution's platforms to encourage peer-to-peer exchange and reuse:
Two outlets exist that encourage peer-to-peer exchange and reuse, including:
• Tiger-ReTail is used to exchange furniture, books, housing, jobs, and more.
• University Resource Recovery Program for donating or finding furniture, electronics, office supplies and other equipment
A brief description of the institution's limits on paper and ink consumption:
Each student is given a quota for the number of pages per semester that the student may print. Princeton also highly encourages students to print less and view documents electronically. In addition, the University's printers automatically print double-sided (unless otherwise specified by the student) to conserve paper.
A brief description of the institution's initiatives to make materials available online by default rather than printing them:
All Princeton course catalogs and schedules are offered online.
Princeton’s Admissions Office transitioned to only taking online applications and only notifying students about their applications electronically.
OIT has worked with several campus offices to develop and implement a new paperless advising system. These ‘advising tools’ facilitate valuable discussions between students and their residential college advisers.
A brief description of the institution's program to reduce residence hall move-in/move-out waste:
For a fee, students may store their belongings during the summer through the Princeton Student Agencies Moving and Storage Agency. Additionally, by providing summer storage to international students and students studying abroad, the University is helping to reduce potential waste that could otherwise result from packaging and shipping.
To reduce move-out waste, the Office of Sustainability and Eco-Reps collaborate with Building Services to designate donation locations across campus. Students are encouraged to donate books, school supplies, clothing, unopened food and toiletries, furniture, and other reusable materials.
Since 2017, the EcoReps and the Office of Sustainability have collected these items and other donations, stored them in temporary storage sites, and resold them at affordable prices during the move-in period for the fall semester, saving material that would otherwise be sent to a landfill. The effort has been very successful, with nearly every item being sold or given away, and the money earned helps make the project break even. Over the years, the effort has been expanded and diverts around 20 tons of material from the landfill. A continued goal is to develop further and increase the efficiency of operations to further lower costs.
A brief description of the institution's programs or initiatives to recover and reuse other materials intended for disposal:
Clothing donations are accepted year-round in collection boxes in laundry rooms in residential colleges. The EcoReps also hold clothing swaps during the year.
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:
Recycling program: https://sustain.princeton.edu/recycle
University Resource Recovery Program: https://facilities.princeton.edu/services/resource-recovery-program
Tiger ReTail exchange platform: https://ttrade.tigerapps.org/
Composting on campus: https://scraplab.princeton.edu/
Waste Oil Recyclers program: https://wasteoilrecyclers.com/
Note: The baseline data for materials reused, donated, or re-sold is from fiscal year 2007 because the data from fiscal year 2006 is unavailable.
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.