Waste Audit
Loyola Explores New Waste Reduction Strategies
As part of Loyola University Chicago's commitment to environmental sustainability, the University is working to reduce the amount of waste generated on its campuses. A committee led by the Office of Sustainability is developing a Zero Waste and Sustainable Materials Management Plan outlining steps to achieve ambitious waste reduction goals. Before creating the plan, the University conducted a waste audit to understand what goes into waste streams. The audit uncovered meaningful opportunities to divert more materials from landfills.
Staff and student volunteers hand-sorted waste materials into 33 identified categories to characterize the contents of landfill and recycling streams.
Loyola partnered with the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center (ISTC) to conduct the audit. The ISTC team started with walkthroughs of the Lake Shore, Water Tower, and Health Sciences Campuses. They assessed current materials management infrastructure and discussed programs, operations, and challenges with staff from the Office of Sustainability and Facilities teams.
Next, housekeeping staff from Allied Universal collected bags of materials from the landfill and recycling bins in the buildings at the Lake Shore and Water Tower Campuses. The Facilities Grounds team transported the bags to a sorting location on the Lake Shore Campus. ISTC staff, Loyola staff, and student volunteers hand-sorted the materials into 33 identified categories to determine a detailed characterization of the landfill and recycling streams. The team collected waste from various building types to achieve a representative sample that ISTC consultants could extrapolate to other buildings across the institution's varied activity zones. The staff and volunteers sorted 1,922.5 pounds of material from landfill bins and 1,531.8 pounds from recycling bins. They also assessed the contamination levels in 132.3 pounds of material from dining hall organic waste bins.
Waste characterization data from the waste audit process provides insight into what items are being generated and discarded on Loyola's campuses, where opportunities exist to increase diversion. For example, the audit found that nearly 80 percent of the waste in the bins bound for the landfill was recyclable, compostable, or avoidable. In addition, more than 44 percent of the materials in the recycling bins were not recyclable.
Donatella Poveda, a Loyola senior in the School of Environmental Sustainability, volunteered to help with the audit. She said it gave her insights into how the University could improve recycling and composting rates.
"What surprised me about waste produced on Loyola's campuses is that the waste varies depending on what kind of building you are auditing. There will always be some things in common, but an office building's waste looks quite different from the waste of a residence hall," she said. "Keeping that in mind will allow us to improve our waste disposal because we can have a better understanding of the needs of each building.”
The observations and data from the waste audit directly informed and helped to prioritize recommendations in Loyola's forthcoming Zero Waste and Sustainable Materials Management plan. Strategies fall into categories including waste prevention, plastic reduction, organic waste diversion and composting, waste and recycling infrastructure, and engagement and advocacy. For example, the plan committee recommends expanding the campus compost bucket program, eliminating single-use plastics, and updating signage on waste and recycling bins to improve recycling rates and reduce contamination.
The Office of Sustainability team expects the Zero Waste plan to be complete by the start of the 2025 spring semester. The waste audit was critical in understanding material generation and diversion at Loyola and informing strategies for cutting waste.
Loyola partnered with the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center (ISTC) to conduct the audit. The ISTC team started with walkthroughs of the Lake Shore, Water Tower, and Health Sciences Campuses. They assessed current materials management infrastructure and discussed programs, operations, and challenges with staff from the Office of Sustainability and Facilities teams.
Next, housekeeping staff from Allied Universal collected bags of materials from the landfill and recycling bins in the buildings at the Lake Shore and Water Tower Campuses. The Facilities Grounds team transported the bags to a sorting location on the Lake Shore Campus. ISTC staff, Loyola staff, and student volunteers hand-sorted the materials into 33 identified categories to determine a detailed characterization of the landfill and recycling streams. The team collected waste from various building types to achieve a representative sample that ISTC consultants could extrapolate to other buildings across the institution's varied activity zones. The staff and volunteers sorted 1,922.5 pounds of material from landfill bins and 1,531.8 pounds from recycling bins. They also assessed the contamination levels in 132.3 pounds of material from dining hall organic waste bins.
Waste characterization data from the waste audit process provides insight into what items are being generated and discarded on Loyola's campuses, where opportunities exist to increase diversion. For example, the audit found that nearly 80 percent of the waste in the bins bound for the landfill was recyclable, compostable, or avoidable. In addition, more than 44 percent of the materials in the recycling bins were not recyclable.
Donatella Poveda, a Loyola senior in the School of Environmental Sustainability, volunteered to help with the audit. She said it gave her insights into how the University could improve recycling and composting rates.
"What surprised me about waste produced on Loyola's campuses is that the waste varies depending on what kind of building you are auditing. There will always be some things in common, but an office building's waste looks quite different from the waste of a residence hall," she said. "Keeping that in mind will allow us to improve our waste disposal because we can have a better understanding of the needs of each building.”
The observations and data from the waste audit directly informed and helped to prioritize recommendations in Loyola's forthcoming Zero Waste and Sustainable Materials Management plan. Strategies fall into categories including waste prevention, plastic reduction, organic waste diversion and composting, waste and recycling infrastructure, and engagement and advocacy. For example, the plan committee recommends expanding the campus compost bucket program, eliminating single-use plastics, and updating signage on waste and recycling bins to improve recycling rates and reduce contamination.
The Office of Sustainability team expects the Zero Waste plan to be complete by the start of the 2025 spring semester. The waste audit was critical in understanding material generation and diversion at Loyola and informing strategies for cutting waste.