RecycleMania returns! - 2010-02-25

RECYCLEMANIA RETURNS TO PAUL SMITH’S COLLEGE
Northern Sanitation donates Dumpster toward recycling effort this year

CONTACT: Kenneth Aaron, Director of Communications, (518) 327-6297; David LaFay, (518) 327-6885

Photographs and cutlines available at http://bit.ly/dfDtcR

PAUL SMITHS – That’s not just a Dumpster on the quad at Paul Smith’s College – it’s a monument to sustainability.

For the third straight year, Paul Smith’s College students are participating in RecycleMania, a nationwide competition among college and university students to reduce, reuse and recycle the most campus waste. Northern Sanitation of Plattsburgh, which oversees waste management at the college, donated the Dumpster and is keeping count of recyclables during the 10-week contest.

“Recycling is an integral part of Paul Smith’s commitment to promote sustainability and reduce our overall carbon footprint,” said David LaFay, campus sustainability assistant and a junior majoring in business management & entrepreneurial studies. “As an educational institution, we need to lead the way in showing how to curb wasted resources.”

At Paul Smith’s, the contest is coordinated by campus sustainability assistants, the Students for Environmental Action club and First-Year Seminar course.

The competition began on January 17 and runs through March 27. So far, the Paul Smith’s College community has recycled more than 5,000 pounds of plastic, glass, paper and cardboard since the contest started. Competitors vie to recycle the most per person, generate the smallest amount of waste and recycle the largest percentage of their overall waste.

“We will continue to work with Paul Smith’s College in support of their sustainability initiatives related to resource and waste management practices,” said Kevin Menard, accounts manager for Northern Sanitation/Casella Waste. “We hope in the near future to introduce zero-sort recycling for the college and the northern Adirondack area, which will greatly simplify recycling efforts leading to a dramatic increase in the amount of recyclables collected.”

The program is one of several efforts to minimize the college’s environmental impact. All of Paul Smith’s electricity use is backed by wind-energy credits; trays were removed from the college’s dining hall, minimizing both food waste and water use; and President John W. Mills was one of the first to sign the American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment.

More than 600 schools are participating in RecycleMania, which is organized by several schools and administered by the Keep America Beautiful and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

ABOUT PAUL SMITH'S COLLEGE

At Paul Smith’s College, it’s about the experience. The college, whose campus is on the shores of Lower St. Regis Lake, is the only four-year institution of higher education in the 6-million-acre Adirondack Park of New York State. Our programs, in fields including hospitality, culinary arts, forestry, natural resources, entrepreneurship, the sciences, and many others, draw on industries and resources available in our own backyard while preparing students for successful careers anywhere.

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