Loading
Improve the Recycling Program
Olin has impressive recycling rates compared to other colleges, but there is always room for improvement. Most of the following ideas boil down to making recycling more convenient, because convenience is an embarrassingly important factor in determining what people will do.
Bottles & Cans in the AC
The Academic Center has paper recycling readily available, which is great. Unfortunately, bottle/can receptacles can only be found by the elevators, a surprisingly inconvenient place for many people; thus, a lot of bottles and cans get thrown out rather than recycled. To correct this, Facilities has installed additional bottle/can bins on either end of each floor in the AC for the convenience of people who take the stairs.
Electronic Waste Recycling
Currently, any electronic waste can be brought to Information Technology, where it will be picked up and disposed of at the proper recycling area at the Needham Transfer Station. However, very few students are aware of this opportunity. Additionally, it is rather inconvenient due to the weight and unwieldiness of many electronic devices. To address this issue of inconvenience, the Facilities Department has offered to pick up electronic waste when requested (the same way you'd request a workorder) and bring to IT. This offer may not seem like much, but it is important to properly dispose of electronic waste, as it is a much higher-impact waste category than wastes like paper and plastic.
Cardboard
In each of the dorm trash rooms, there is a large bin for cardboard recycling. However, no such bin exists in the Academic Center. Due to the numerous projects that take place in the AC, the amount of waste cardboard is likely quite high. Thus, cardboard recycling bins have been added to the AC. These new bins are located just outside the freight elevator on each floor.
Batteries
Currently, Olin has a system for recycling batteries. However, very few know of its existence, which is understandable as many trash rooms lack battery collection bins. We placed clearly labeled bins in each trash room in order to improve the implementation and advertisement of the battery recycling program. These bins accept all batteries, including (but not limited to) AA, AAA, C, D, lead acids, and lithium ions. Batteries can have dire environmental consequences if not disposed of properly, so a well-advertised program is important such that Olin can achieve the highest possible rate of battery recycling.
Aerosol Cans
Until recently, Olin lacked a procedure for dealing with used aerosol cans. Since these pressurized cans can be an explosion hazard if simply put in the trash, this was an issue that needed prompt addressing. Facilities purchased an aerosol puncture system so that the cans can be depressurized before they are thrown away, thereby removing the danger. Our role in this aerosol project was to request dedicated recycling bins for aerosol cans in each of the dorm trash rooms, as well as another dedicated bin for the paint booth in the MechE stockroom. These extra bins will help maximize the percentage of cans that will be safely punctured by the system rather than become hazards in the trash.