| Overall Rating | Silver - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 56.23 |
| Liaison | Rachael Wein |
| Submission Date | July 11, 2014 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
Smith College
OP-22: Waste Minimization
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
0.37 / 5.00 |
Bob
Dombkowski Supervisor- Grounds Section Facilities |
Waste generated::
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Materials recycled | 345.28 Tons | 301.79 Tons |
| Materials composted | 1,473.66 Tons | 68.58 Tons |
| Materials reused, donated or re-sold | 36.98 Tons | 0 Tons |
| Materials disposed in a solid waste landfill or incinerator | 560.57 Tons | 2,128.88 Tons |
Figures needed to determine "Weighted Campus Users”::
| Performance Year | Baseline Year | |
| Number of residential students | 2,401 | 2,400 |
| Number of residential employees | 6 | 6 |
| Number of in-patient hospital beds | 0 | 0 |
| Full-time equivalent enrollment | 2,966.20 | 2,796 |
| Full-time equivalent of employees | 1,170.44 | 1,128.31 |
| Full-time equivalent of distance education students | 0 | 0 |
Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):
| Start Date | End Date | |
| Performance Year | Jan. 1, 2013 | Dec. 31, 2013 |
| Baseline Year | July 1, 2004 | June 30, 2005 |
A brief description of when and why the waste generation baseline was adopted:
Oldest year in STARS baseline year guidelines
A brief description of any (non-food) waste audits employed by the institution:
A brief description of any institutional procurement policies designed to prevent waste:
Dining Services uses bulk dispensers reduce packaging materials in student dining rooms for juices, sodas, ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise and most cereals
A brief description of any surplus department or formal office supplies exchange program that facilitates reuse of materials:
A brief description of the institution's efforts to make materials available online by default rather than printing them:
A brief description of any limits on paper and ink consumption employed by the institution:
There is no free printing for students in any computer labs/libraries.
Dining Services has installed computers in all the kitchens to speed up communication and cut down on paper usage.
A brief description of any programs employed by the institution to reduce residence hall move-in/move-out waste:
During move-in, there are programs to share used furniture so that students don't have to buy new, and Facilities works to collect all the cardboard for recycling.
During move-out, the Grounds team send out a truck to "harvest" the recycling that is put out by students, and Facilities Management typically schedules an early clean-out event. Students who bring out a bag of paper for recycling or clothing for donation receive a reward for their efforts.
A brief description of any other (non-food) waste minimization strategies employed by the institution:
All furniture is recycled through IRN. Smith prefers re-use over recycling, and works to re-use furniture, even if it has a higher monetary value for recycling.
A brief description of any food waste audits employed by the institution:
A brief description of any programs and/or practices to track and reduce pre-consumer food waste in the form of kitchen food waste, prep waste and spoilage:
Dining Services encourages chefs to batch cook and cut down on food waste. Extra food is used creatively on the salad bar or incorporated into new dishes.
A brief description of programs and/or practices to track and reduce post-consumer food waste:
All sit-down dining halls on campus have always been trayless as standard practice.
A brief description of the institution's provision of reusable and/or third party certified compostable to-go containers for to-go food and beverage items (in conjunction with a composting program):
Dining Services' "grab and go" locations use biodegradable flatware, napkins and containers.
Dining Services has composting programs at Cutter/Ziskind, Chase, Tyler, King/Scales, Cushing-Emerson, Morrow-Wilson, Comstock-Wilder, Hubbard and Lamont houses. Compostable pre- and post-consumer food waste is collected twice weekly and distributed to local farms in Westhampton, MA.
For five years, at Central Check-In, which opens the academic year, Dining Services has purchased and distributed to students insulated plastic mugs with lids for hot beverages or soups, as well as reusable nalgene and aluminum water bottles. Dining Services discontinued bottled water at the "Grab and Go" dining location and installed extra water spigots. We encourage students to bring their reusable water bottles to this and other dining locations to fill up.
Dining Services purchased and distributed recyclable, "to go" tote bags the last two years for the students to use & reuse for their "grab & go" items. Dining Services eliminated the use of all "to go" paper and plasticware in their other residential dining locations and encourages students who need to take an occasional meal replacement with them to bring their own "meal-sized" container.
A brief description of the institution's provision of reusable service ware for “dine in” meals and reusable and/or third party certified compostable service ware for to-go meals (in conjunction with a composting program):
Regular china, flatware and glasses are used in the dining rooms because they can be washed and reused.
A brief description of any discounts offered to customers who use reusable containers (e.g. mugs) instead of disposable or compostable containers in to-go food service operations:
In both of the to-go dining halls on campus, students are required to bring their own reusable mugs, as none are provided. In the on campus cafe, for the cost of a small to-go coffee, customers may fill their own reusable mug. The cafe also does not charge for customers for hot water or ice water if they bring in their own reusable mug.
Students are encouraged to use Tupperware and hot/cold plastic reusable cups if they wish to take food or beverages out of the dining rooms.
A brief description of other dining services waste minimization programs and initiatives:
Dining Services has produce delivered in heavy-duty cardboard boxes that are returned to them for reuse.
Reusable cleaning cloths have replaced disposable ones in the dining rooms and kitchens.
The website URL where information about the institution’s waste minimization initiatives is available:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
The large jump in compost tonnage from FY05 to FY13 is due to Smith starting an internal composting program for the manure from its horse stables.
The large jump in compost tonnage from FY05 to FY13 is due to Smith starting an internal composting program for the manure from its horse stables.
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.