UVM is Diverting More Food Waste Than Ever!
Each year, our hauling contractor Casella conducts a "compost-weight audit" for the UVM campus. This enables us to know exactly how much food waste is collected on a weekly basis. This year's audit took place Oct 17-21. Each day, the Casella driver arrived to campus with an empty truck, serviced all locations, then proceeded directly to the compost facility to be weighed. (Ordinarily, the Casella truck also stops at other customers and businesses along the way).
The UVM campus diverted 9.07 tons per week with Monday being the heaviest day (as food waste in the dining halls is accumulated over the weekend). This is an average of 1.81 tons per day and a 14% increase in the amount collected for composting over last year, and an 80% increase since 2006 when we first began conducting this annual audit.
Weekly Average of Food Waste Collected for Composting
2006: 4.96 tons
2007: 5.2 tons
2008: no data collected
2009: no data collected
2010 - 7.93 tons
2011 - 9.07 tons
"One Revolution" Bicycle Pick-Up Service Begins on Redstone
UVM Recycling recently contracted with One Revolution Compost to pilot test their human-powered bicycle collection service at two residence halls on the Redstone campus.
Residents in Christie-Wright-Patterson and Wing-Davis-Wilks can now set aside food scraps in special brown paper bags, which will be collected by Eco-Reps and stored in a One Revolution tote behind the building. Every Thursday, a member of the One Revolution team will pick up the full totes and transport them...via bicycle...to the CSWD compost drop-off site downtown. The service will continue through Spring 2012 semester! For more information: Contact recycle@uvm.edu or one of the CWP or WDE Eco-Reps.
UVM Custodial Helps "Pilot" Test Composting at Allen House
Early in the Fall semester, the Center for Cultural Pluralism asked Custodial Services for help in setting up a collection system for food leftovers in the building. The Allen House kitchen hosts many events including the weekly Hillel Shabbat dinner.
UVM Recycling supplied small pails for use inside the kitchen, and a larger cart for the back porch. Custodial staff empty the kitchen pail daily, and once per week, they transport the full cart over to the Davis Center where it is weighed and washed out. Custodial staff report that about 30 pounds of food waste is being collected for composting each week from the Allen House.
"Green Mountain Compost" Facility is Up and Running
Staff members from UVM Recycling and University Dining Services got a special "sneak peak" on November 4 at the all new state-of-the-art composting facility located in Williston. Green Mountain Compost is the new name for the CSWD-owned operation (formerly known as Intervale Compost). The new facility features a large building with rows of covered bays on an expansive concrete pad. The bays have slotted floors that allow air to be blown up into the piles of compost. The “static aerated” system allows for oxygen to penetrate the piles more effectively than with the former “turned windrow” method used at Intervale. The result is a faster process, drier compost, and much less diesel fuel used. UVM sends over 9 tons of food waste to this facility each week.
Davis Center... Compost Collection Expanding in 2012
Since its opening, the Davis Center collection of food waste and compostable packaging centered in the Marketplace area, Brennans and Hendersons Cafe. However, waste audits conducted with UVM Eco-Reps have demonstrated that food waste and packaging ends up elsewhere in the building where collection systems are not in place.
Now, the Davis Center operations staff is working with Eco-Reps, UVM Recycling, and UVM Custodial Services to expand the collection system throughout the building. This will involve retrofitting the existing recycling stations, designing and installing new signs, pilot testing the system to determine additional labor involved, and monitoring contamination levels. Changes are expected to be in place for Spring Semester. For more information: Contact the DC Eco-Reps: Caylin McKee and Olivia Bulgher.
Find a Compost Cart on Campus - New Map On Line!
UVM Recycling student intern, Beau Tetreault-Cramer, helped us create an interactive Google map to pin point locations where students and staff can drop-off food scraps for composting. Check out the map here.