Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 48.68
Liaison Darcy Coughlan
Submission Date Nov. 24, 2015
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.0

Coastal Carolina University
OP-22: Waste Minimization

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.80 / 5.00 Jennifer Sellers
Sustainability Coordinator
Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Waste generated::
Performance Year Baseline Year
Materials recycled 243.74 Tons
+ Date Revised: Dec. 14, 2015
187.52 Tons
+ Date Revised: Dec. 14, 2015
Materials composted 110.30 Tons
+ Date Revised: Dec. 14, 2015
12.54 Tons
+ Date Revised: Dec. 14, 2015
Materials reused, donated or re-sold 9.55 Tons
+ Date Revised: Dec. 14, 2015
2.21 Tons
+ Date Revised: Dec. 14, 2015
Materials disposed in a solid waste landfill or incinerator 972.06 Tons
+ Date Revised: Dec. 14, 2015
919.57 Tons
+ Date Revised: Dec. 14, 2015

Figures needed to determine "Weighted Campus Users”::
Performance Year Baseline Year
Number of residential students 3,424
+ Date Revised: Dec. 16, 2015
3,018
Number of residential employees 14
+ Date Revised: Dec. 16, 2015
0
Number of in-patient hospital beds 0 0
Full-time equivalent enrollment 8,870
+ Date Revised: Dec. 16, 2015
8,688
Full-time equivalent of employees 1,262
+ Date Revised: Dec. 16, 2015
1,050
Full-time equivalent of distance education students 12
+ Date Revised: Dec. 16, 2015
1

Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):
Start Date End Date
Performance Year July 1, 2013 June 30, 2014
Baseline Year July 1, 2012 June 30, 2013

A brief description of when and why the waste generation baseline was adopted:

Coastal Carolina University hired a new sustainability coordinator in 2011 for the Sustainability Initiative office. The first major task was to start a streamline recycling program throughout campus. With the purchase of several hundred bins indoors and outdoors, the recycling program officially started in 2012, which is why the baseline is best to calculate at that time.


A brief description of any (non-food) waste audits employed by the institution:

Landfill on the Lawn program. Eco-Rep Student Leaders took a day to measure waste from University Housing. They pulled about 20 bags of trash from dumpsters and sorted it. They measured about 75 pounds of trash and the rest was recycling, which was about 200 pounds, mostly cardboard, plastic and glass bottles and paper. There wasn't a lot of food waste, which was surprising. This project was very simply and more observant, than data-driven.


A brief description of any institutional procurement policies designed to prevent waste:
---

A brief description of any surplus department or formal office supplies exchange program that facilitates reuse of materials:

Coastal Carolina University has a formal program in place to exchange office supplies. We currently have a warehouse area in our procurement office where used office furniture is placed when it is moved out of office spaces. The items are then available to be viewed and picked from by other staff and faculty members. These items fill the needs of many across campus by reusing what the university had already purchased.


A brief description of the institution's efforts to make materials available online by default rather than printing them:

Coastal Carolina University promotes paperless activity by putting student’s schedules exclusively on-line and are only printed if deemed absolutely necessary by the student. The staff directory is also exclusively available on-line. The University has created a forms page that allows most documents to be viewed and completed electronically. We also have a work-order system through Schooldude that promotes paperless communication between requestor and vendor.


A brief description of any limits on paper and ink consumption employed by the institution:
---

A brief description of any programs employed by the institution to reduce residence hall move-in/move-out waste:

Campus Salvage (Move out) About the Program - At the end of the academic year, Sustain Coastal organizes and coordinates the Campus Salvage move-out program. Since its first effort in 2008, the program has evolved from grassroots dumpster diving into a well-known structured campaign. It's not just about saving items from the landfill, it's about collecting items to donate to local organizations and helping those in need in our community. The success of Campus Salvage depends on your donations!
During Move-Out in the Spring semester, the Campus Salvage Program sets out PODS across campus to accept unwanted items from students, staff and faculty at the end of the school year. More than half of the items we collect are donated to local organizations in need. The rest is sold at a community sale to pay for the costs to place the PODS on campus and help provide funding to the CCU Student Green Fund.
In 2014 we were able to donate 9.54 tons of clothing and food to the local community from this event.

(Move In) About the Program Students moving onto campus bring lots of items, including cardboard boxes. Every year, during Move-In Weekend, students and their families have the opportunity to recycle vast amounts of cardboard. Designated cardboard locations are set-up throughout the residence halls on main campus and University Place.
In 2014 we were able to recycle 9.92 tons of cardboard during move-in weekend.


A brief description of any other (non-food) waste minimization strategies employed by the institution:

We can copy and paste the recycling information for this question if you want but that pertains more to diversion and not minimization. Wasn’t sure if you wanted to list Teal Transportation (more conservation than minimization) in this spot? Previous question will cover the schedules that are on-line and directories that are on-line. The University forms page that promotes sending documents electronically instead of printing. We also have a work-order system through Schooldude that promotes paperless communication between requestor and vendor.


A brief description of any food waste audits employed by the institution:

In collaboration with dining services, Eco-Rep Leaders help coordinate a Weigh the Waste education activity to teach students about food waste. The activity took place during the Fall 2014 semester for the first and there are plans to continue in the Spring and ongoing.


A brief description of any programs and/or practices to track and reduce pre-consumer food waste in the form of kitchen food waste, prep waste and spoilage:

Pulper


A brief description of programs and/or practices to track and reduce post-consumer food waste:
---

A brief description of the institution's provision of reusable and/or third party certified compostable to-go containers for to-go food and beverage items (in conjunction with a composting program):

Aramark currently offers an exchange system for the residential restaurant that allows diners to swipe in and fill a cleaned and sanitized container and take it with them to eat. They will then return their box and exchange it for a key tag and leave, or they can get another box to fill and go with them.


A brief description of the institution's provision of reusable service ware for “dine in” meals and reusable and/or third party certified compostable service ware for to-go meals (in conjunction with a composting program):

Aramark provides silverware for dine in meals that are cleaned and sanitized in the location for re use. We do not currently offer compostable service ware for meals to go as the assumption is that they will use the utensils in their room, home, or office.


A brief description of any discounts offered to customers who use reusable containers (e.g. mugs) instead of disposable or compostable containers in to-go food service operations:

Aramark provides meal plan holders a reusable water bottle that they can use to refill beverages in the residential dining areas at no cost. Use of these bottles is encouraged in place of paper, plastic, or foam cups to reduce the amount of landfill waste on campus.


A brief description of other dining services waste minimization programs and initiatives:

Aramark has a rigorous waste minimization process that ensures that our composting bins are used minimally. We do have a composting program on campus that utilizes non-animal protein food scraps to return waste into usable compost.


The website URL where information about the institution’s waste minimization initiatives is available:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
---

The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.