America Recycles Day: Single Stream Recycling Announcement!

You have have noticed bins around campus that say "paper only". New changes are coming this January that will be replacing those bins... with labels for mixed recycling!

You will be able to mix your recycling- any paper, plastic, glass or metal can all go into one bin! Also known as Single Stream Recycling. 

However, do be careful what you put in the compost! Only food scraps or dirty paper product like wax paper, paper plates, paper cups, paper napkins can go in the compost! Contamination of the compost bins in the Commons means that our hauler, Waste Neutral, won't take the compost to the composting facility, where it biodegrades into fertile soil! 

Did you know UMBC has adopted a color coded sorting system for waste? Green is for compost, blue is for recycling, and black is for trash/landfill! You'll see the colors on everything from the bags in the bins, to the lids on the bins, to the new labels for the bins. 

Don't forget to Reduce, Reuse and Recycle! Print out one of our info-graphicsto remind yourself how to sort your recycling and compost, and visit our website for more info! 

https://sustainability.umbc.edu/waste/ 

Residential areas on campus used single stream recycling since they didn't have as much paper as the rest of campus. Paper was previously collected separately because we earned money for the clean, dry paper that was recycled. Those funds went back into UMBC's recycling budget. To make it easier for everyone to recycle, we're going to collect recycling all together now! 

There are bins with green lids for collecting composting in the Commons. This graphic(above) shows what can go into those bins! 

Here's some photos of packaging from the Commons, and which bin you should toss them into. Note the white compostable utensils and containers are made from plants not plastic. You can find them at Masala's and Wild Greens.