The TerraCycle It! project strives to prevent items that are not recyclable on campus, such as candy and snack wrappers and office supplies, from ending up in the landfill or contaminating the existing recycling. This pilot project will involve placing TerraCycle materials collection boxes at the UArizona Libraries (both Main and Science & Engineering), with CSF support, and then having the Libraries ship those boxes back to TerraCycle for proper recycling. An Office Supplies collection box and a Candy and Snack Wrapper collection box will be placed in public lobbies at each location, making them accessible to UArizona and Tucson community members. These bins will meet the need for alternative recycling methods for items that the Tucson recycling center cannot accept.
Additionally, signage will be displayed in the libraries via physical fliers and digital monitors to assist participants in sorting materials and avoiding contamination. The UA Libraries' regular engagement and communication with the Waste Reduction committee will ensure that contamination of these boxes is minimal or non-existent.
Over the course of the spring semester, the project team filled 16 boxes and sent them back to TerraCycle to be turned into raw material to then be transformed into new products. The committee did struggle with contamination despite signage and physical barriers and removed over 244 pieces of contamination in total.
5 students dedicated their time to checking on the boxes, removing contamination to ensure the boxes' contents could still be recycled.
