Thompson Rivers University
OP-23: Waste Diversion

Composting of food scraps has increased in prominence on campus through the use of an in-vessel composter (started in January 2014) and a local farmer picking up food scaps (for last three years). Almost half of the campus is now under the food scraps composting program, with the other half scheduled to also join by February 2015. All campus yard trippings and other 'yard-waste organic material' is compoted through the City of Kamloops' free compost drop-of program. Used furniture can be donated to other schools or charities if it is still usable. If not usable, the metal from used furniture is turned into scrap and recycled externally, or used for the school’s welding program. TRU became a member of the National Zero Waste Council (2014) and is currently developing a Zero Waste Program on campus to continue achieving sustainability targets. TRU also sells many usable but unwanted items through the Purchasing department. There are many 'free boxes' that are used around campus, whereby people leave things they don't want and passers-by take what they want. Finally, the TRU Office of Environment and Sustainability supports the student club, TRU Eco, which hosts a Take, Leave, Swap event each semester, where people bring unwanted items to the event booth, which are then displayed. Passers-by can take things, leave things of their own to donate to the event, or swap something. The Van Houte Coffee Co. sales reps pick-up used Kurig-styl coffee pods from around campus and send them to a local cement plant, which uses them as hog-fuel in theri kilns.

When possible, excess food from Culinary Arts (CU) is donated to the Kamloops Mission (social assitance and housing program for men) or Kamloops Food Bank. The local food bank comes to pick up the surplus perishable food supplies at the end of each semester from CU, or before they are closed for an extended period of time (example: Reading Break). Fresh leftover food from Culinary Arts, such as soups and stews, is sold in the cafeteria. During move-in and move-out processes in the residences, a food drive for all perishable food items is hosted.

TRU is fully engaged in composting with the use of a JORA 5100 in-vessel composter. Food scraps deposited into bins by faculty and students who are preparing food in the TRU Culinary Arts Program is collected by the janitorial staff, prossessed in the composter, and the end results are used on the campus grounds as fertilizer.

TRU is fully engaged in composting with the use of a JORA 5100 in-vessel composter. Food scraps from faculty, staff and students (banana peels, apple cores, tea bags, etc.) are collected by the janitorial staff, deposited into the Jora composter, and then the end result--compost--is used on the campus grounds as fertilizer. TRU Culinary Arts and certain campus coffee shops provide coffee grounds and food scraps that are picked up twice a week by a local farmer.

The above covers all forms of recycling and waste diversion efforts at TRU.

Materials diverted from the landfill consists of: electronics, scrap metal, mixed recycling, compost (food scraps and yard trimmings), and all usable but unwanted TRU items sold through the BC Auction program.