UGA 2014 Campus Sustainability Report UGA 2014 Campus Sustainability Report | Page 64

Waste Reduction

UGA is rethinking waste, moving toward a zero waste mentality. In FY14, UGA sent 295 fewer tons to the landfill than
in 2010, about a 6% reduction overall. New single-stream interior “waste reduction stations” for “landfill” and “mixed
recyclables” have been installed in over 28 campus buildings and 30 solar-powered exterior waste reduction stations
were installed on campus. During the first six months of operation, the solar-powered exterior bins increased recycling
in the impacted areas from less than 2% to 41% of materials diverted from the landfill resulting in 4.91 tons of mixed
recyclables captured and a significant reduction in staff time and fuel use for collection, allowing for 27.5 hours per week
to be allocated to other critical tasks. The UGA composting program managed by Office of Sustainability
student interns currently serves over eleven locations and after summer 2014 had diverted a total of 2013 pounds of
coffee grounds, apples cores and other organics from the landfill. The dining hall composting program was “scaled up”
in 2014 from a pilot pre-consumer program in one dining hall to collection of all organic wastes from all UGA dining
halls, diverting an estimated 10,000 pounds of organic material from the ACC landfill every week during fall and spring
semesters.

INC
E 20
10

ION
REDUCT

6%

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LANDFILL TONS