Sustainability at Art Center
In our ongoing efforts toward creating a sustainable campus, Art Center College of Design is implementing a zero waste plan that will encompass composting, source reduction, recycling, reuse, and environmental preferred purchasing. Zero waste is a design principle that goes beyond recycling by taking a “whole system” approach to the vast flow of resources and waste.
Phase one of creating a sustainable campus was to conduct a waste stream analysis, spearheaded by EcoCouncil in the spring and summer terms of 2007. The study identified steps to achieve zero waste through maximizing recycling and composting while minimizing waste.
The second phase of creating a sustainable campus is to implement the zero waste plan. Next week, Art Center will be meeting with an organics hauler to arrange composting of the College’s organic waste (i.e. food scraps, biodegradable foodservice items, napkins, etc.). Once the contract is in place, all polystyrene and plastic foodservice items (plates, cups, take-out containers, utensils) in the Cafeteria will be replaced with compostable and biodegradable products. We depend on the entire Art Center community to make zero waste a success. Please do your part and place compostable and biodegradable products in the proper bins.
For information about the composting program look for EcoCouncil displays and posters around campus or attend an EcoCouncil meeting. For specific details about the program and future phases visit Inside Art Center (http://inside.artcenter.edu) or speak to Jered Gold, Director, Internal Communications and Community Relations at 626.396.2251 or jered.gold@artcenter.edu.
Monday, July 7th, 2008 at 2:57 pm. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Ashley:
July 25th, 2008 at 1:45 pmThanks to EcoCouncil and the school for getting this program up and running. I’m pleased to see you’ve taken these steps and am hoping that these changes are just the beginning. I know that Eco Council has put forth a campus-wide plan and I trust they’ve covered all the basics: paper and can recycling across campus (not just in the cafeteria), low-flow water faucets and toilets, air driers instead of paper towel dispensers in the bathrooms, and making sure to buy renewable energy from the power company. We could also consolidate our card system so that students can use their IDs like a debit card to buy things at the student store, the cafeteria, and all the laser labs, copy machines, and CNC machines. It’s a system already in place in colleges across the country and it would cut down on the amount of plastic the school consumes (every student needs only 1 card instead of 4).
Please keep this momentum going so that Art Center can be a leader in sustainability – leading by example!
Philip van Allen:
August 15th, 2027 at 11:09 amIs it true that despite the segregation of different kinds of trash in the cafeteria, it is all disposed of in the same place right now? In other words, the three different bins create a false impression that the different types of trash are being treated in different ways, when in fact they are recombined and enter the normal trash stream?
Community Forum Moderator:
September 23rd, 2027 at 10:46 amHi Phillip,
I was able to gather some information for you. The first phase of Art Center’s overall long-term Sustainability Initiative was launched during the Summer term with the introduction of compostable and biodegradable packaging and supplies in the Cafeteria. At that time we also announced that Art Center would be contracting an organics hauler for composting.
Working closely with SCS Engineers during the break, we developed a plan for transforming Art Center’s existing collection program into one that is more sustainable and less wasteful of natural resources. Art Center’s current waste hauler, Athens Services will continue to collect both regular and organic waste from the College.
All organic waste is taken by Athens to a local recycling and resource recovery company for composting. Regular waste and recyclable materials are taken together to Athens’ Materials Recovery Facility (MRF), a state-of-the-art plant designed specifically for the processing and recycling of municipal waste.
The College will continue to work with SCS Engineers, EcoCouncil and key stakeholders on achieving zero waste, including source reduction, recycling, and preferred purchasing. Additionally, these teams will examine other long-term programs as part of Art Center’s overall Sustainability Initiative.