During the past few months, VCU has been making strides toward achieving a greener campus. Several new recycling strategies are now in action on the Monroe Park and MCV campuses in order to conserve energy and create a cleaner environment.
The university purchased two solar-powered trash compactors, which were installed in September. There is one compactor on the Monroe Park campus between Grace E. Harris Hall and the University Student Commons and one on the MCV campus by the Medical Sciences Building.
“A photovoltaic solar-powered trash compactor will be installed at the VCU Siegel Center in the fall of 2007,” VCU Director of Sustainability Jacek Ghosh said.
Twenty-five new recycling bins were purchased and will be installed starting in October.
The types of recyclable material collected at VCU are “all types of paper, glass, plastic (types 1, 2 and 70) and aluminum beverage containers,” said Steve Heinitz, recycling coordinator.
On average, recyclable material is picked up from VCU once a week in amounts of 73 tons – or 146,000 pounds – of recyclable materials per month.
According to Ghosh, the annual amount of recyclable material collected is 1,100 tons, which amounts to 25 percent of all waste material collected from campus. The new trash collectors and recycling bins were bought and installed to increase the amount of recycled waste to 35 percent.
Two electric trucks were purchased in August to be used for picking up recyclable materials from bins around campus. The trucks will be delivered mid-October.
“When you compare the GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions of the electric trucks to the diesel toolcats normally used, there is quite a difference,” Ghosh said. “The diesel toolcat emits about 8.7 metric tons of CO2e (carbon dioxide equivalent) while the electric truck emits only .07 metric tons of CO2e-about 99 percent less.”
Whether the recycling bins, solar-powered trash compactors and electric trucks will increase the amount of recycled waste by 10 percent is yet to be seen.
“For VCU, it shouldn’t be a matter of buying more recycling bins,” said David Street, VCU history and political science major. “It should be a matter of better publicizing the many we have all over both campuses.”