Kim Williams
Features Editor
It’s easy, helps the environment, and is a hot topic at the beginning of this semester. No, it’s not saving paper by protesting homework. It’s recycling.
“The bags that Housekeeping will be using for recycling bins will be green from now on, instead of the old white ones,” said Michael Robbins, Director of Residence Life, in a campus wide email sent to McDaniel Residential Students.
“The green bags will be placed in all of the recycling containers throughout campus. For the North Village, Garden Apartments, Pa. Avenue Houses and residence halls, there are… recycling containers and built-in recycling that will have the green bags in them. Students do not need to get green bags, just put recycling in the recycling container,” said Ms. Mary Jo Colbert, Director of Conference and Auxillary Services.
“Recycling bags had been white before. Now they’re going to be green, which are more biodegradable. The white bags had been confusing. Students had bought their own bags, so students would see white bags in the trash and think the school didn’t recycle,” said Colbert.
In addition to the switch from white bags to green, RecycleMania began at the end of January. “It’s a competition between colleges. McDaniel will be tracking how much recycling they have. There’s a blank gauge outside the dining hall,” said Colbert.
“You can go to www.recyclemania.org for more on the competition,” said Sunita Pathik, president of the Environmental Action Club (EAC).
EAC is “going to set up a recycling station outside of GLAR for recycling ink cartridges and plastic grocery bags, and will hopefully be getting more regular recycling bins around school, especially Decker,” continued Pathik.
As far as what is recyclable, Colbert listed “Plastic, metal, glass, and paper. When in doubt you can ask.” Colbert said, “It’s comingled. Everything can go in the same bin.”
Additionally, Colbert said, “As for the Pepsi containers, a newspaper or glass bottle can go in that container. I don’t think people realize that all the recycling can go into that container.” While the container is shaped like a bottle, that doesn’t mean it’s restricted to similarly shaped material.
While all recyclable material can go into the same container, it’s important to be careful that no trash gets tossed in. “If there is food waste or other garbage placed in a receptacle, though, the entire bag is considered contaminated and will not be recycled, so please be sure to pay attention where you are disposing of trash on campus,” mentioned Robbins in his email.
We’re a consumer society, but not everything we use has to end up in a landmine. So as Colbert said, “Just make sure and recycle.”
