What did you recycle yesterday?

Lasell College launched our new single stream recycling system yesterday. What did you recycle? Did you take advantage of the opportunity to recycle your cereal box? How about your laundry detergent bottle? The new single stream recycling system significantly expands the types of materials that can be recycled at Lasell College. And all of the materials can be placed in the same container!

Under our previous recycling system, campus members only had the opportunity to recycle paper, cans, and bottles. Now we can recycle cans, milk cartons, books, bottles, newspaper, cereal boxes, cardboard, notebooks, all plastic numbered 1-7, and many more materials. Campus community members now have the opportunity to recycle most of their waste. The challenge now is to change behavior and get students, faculty, and staff into the habit of recycling.

We now have the opportunity to recycle plastics numbered 1-7. What does this mean? Take a look a the bottom of any plastic container and chances are it has a number between 1 and 7. Water bottles, milk bottles, shampoo bottles, ketchup bottles, mustard bottles, yogurt containers, butter tubs, and clear food packaging all can be recycled. Take a look at the bottom of your waste and determine if it can be recycled.

Yesterday I recycled a tissue box, a cardboard box, empty envelopes, and some junk mail. The only trash I generated yesterday during my 9 hours at Lasell was a napkin at the dining hall and a banana peel. Faculty and staff should quickly recognize that they do not need trash bins in their offices and should convert their bins into recycling containers. Students in the residence halls should consider a similar transition. With the new single stream recycling system you should be able to recycle over half of your waste. Consider this a challenge. Can you do it?