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Recycling Initiatives

Recycling, reducing consumption, and reusing resources are the best way to reduce our demand for new resources. U Sustain is working to decrease the demand for new resources, while recycling and reusing as much as possible.

Recycling in Brief

To find out how to recycle in your building, visit the recycling education page.

Union College recycles aluminum, plastic, glass, paper, batteries, cardboard, food scraps, and reuseable items.

Every year, container recycling at Union helps to collect over 150,000 containers and several tons of aluminum, plastic, and glass. Over 40 tons of paper alone are recycled every year.

Recycling Materials

Over the last several years Union College has embarked on a few major recycling initiatives:

  • Facilities Services assumed responsibility of the former student-run recycling program, U Recycle. Since that time, recycling of aluminum, plastic, glass, and paper has spread to every campus building and major walkways.
    • The college currently recycles over 60 tons of materials per year and recycling rates are constantly improving.
  • Facilities services teamed up with residential life and the campus community to collect donated items from student rooms at the end of 2007.

    • Paper Circulation

    Union College recently worked with vendors to reduce the price of recycled paper (30% post consumer fibers). Recycled paper is now very competitive with non-recycled paper and is available for purchase by all departments. This paper has been successfully tested with the new copiers on campus, without any problems.

    New copiers on campus are being enabled with .pdf scanning and e-mail capabilities to help decrease interdepartmental faxing and unnecessary faxing. These printers can also easily make double sided copies to help reduce the number of pages used.

    Donating Useable Materials

    Union College began a huge recycling initiative to recycle materials students no longer need after graduation. Truckloads of materials have been donated to the community, including clothing, electronics, and furniture. Residential Life works with the entire Facilities staff to organize the pick-up, bringing goods from the residence hall to the community. To get more information about this year's pickup, ask your residential advisor.
     
     
     
     

     

    U Sustain seeks to promote sustainability initiatives and educate the campus community about ways to live, work, and enjoy Union in the most environmentally friendly and sustainable ways possible.

     

    Academics
    In an age of pressing environmental concerns, the government, businesses, and universities need graduates that understand basic environmental concerns and solutions. By incorporating environmental and sustainability education, we empower our students to participate in and strengthen our changing society.

    Recycling
    Everything we purchase, use, throw away, or recycle has an impact. U Sustain seeks to help you diminish or eliminate that impact as much as possible through recycling, reduction, and reuse.

    Energy
    Energy is an important component of sustainability and encompasses the electricity that keeps the lights on and the gas that keeps us warm in the blustery Schenectady winter. Knowledge about reducing our energy, and, in turn, our carbon footprint, can enable us all to make a difference.

    Food
    One way we can all make a difference is by being conscious of what we eat and how we eat it. U Sustain seeks to help us all lower our environmental impact by eating local and organic, buying fair trade, using less packaging, and making vegetarian options appealing.

    Financial Resources
    Union College is a large economic power - what the college invests in and purchases can make an important statement. U Sustain strives to help the college make the best economic statements possible.

    Transportation
    Union is a residential, walkable campus, but U Sustain is working on ways to help you get around Union and the greater Schenectady area comfortably, while keeping the environment in mind.