Post-Consumer Compost Collection Begins at Maryland's Stamp Student Union

The Stamp, Facilities Management, the Office of Sustainability, and Dining Services partner to expand the compost program in the university's most visited building.

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - What is better than recycling? Composting! Starting today, visitors of the University of Maryland's Adele H. Stamp Student Union can sort their waste into compost, recycling, and trash at sorting stations adjacent to all main eateries. Food scraps, paper take-out containers, and used paper products (i.e. napkins) can be placed in the bins labeled Compost.

Composting is nature's process of recycling organic materials into a rich soil known as compost. The process keeps waste out of landfills and allows nutrients to continue to cycle through living systems.

Pre-consumer compost collection has been available to students in the university's three resident dining halls and within the Stamp Student Union food vendor kitchens since 2007, but today's announcement marks the first time a post-consumer program has been established where all students, faculty, staff, and visitors can participate in the campus compost effort.

"What started in the dining halls, made its way to The Stamp, and is a growing tradition at UMD. Composting is the new wave of environmentalism and will help us reach our goal of a 75% recycling rate by 2013" says Recycling Coordinator Bill Guididas.

Dan Wray, Assistant Director of Facilities at the Stamp Student Union, received a $32,950 grant from the University Sustainability Fund to help implement the project. Additional funding for the effort came from the Stamp and Facilities Management. The grant underwrote retrofitting on our loading dock to make way for the new compactor and funded the purchase of new containment toters and display signage with directional information about the program.  Full support and participation from students, the University community and visitors to The Stamp is vital to this program's success, said Wray.

"Minimizing the solid waste we send to landfill is an important part of achieving the campus goal of carbon neutrality by 2050," said Office of Sustainabilty Director, Scott Lupin. "We are happy to award projects like these that have an environmental benefit, reduce operational costs, and encourage sustainable behavior."

About the University of Maryland's Sustainability Initiatives

The University of Maryland is recognized as a national leader for sustainability. Ranked among the top 20 green colleges in the nation, UMD has cut its carbon footprint 15% since 2005 and integrated sustainability into its teaching and operations. This year, $300,000 is available through the University Sustainability Fund to students, staff and faculty who can help further sustainability initiatives at the university. For more information, visit the UMD Sustainability Website.

Contact
Frances Avendano
Communications Coordinator
Office of Sustainability
favendan@umd.edu

Sustainabilty