C-ville Weekly Blog Post

C-ville Weekly's environmentally conscious blog, Green Scene, did a small (but positive!) piece yesterday on my new position. Check it out here.

As mentioned, my first major project is to roll out reusable to-go containers in all dining locations around Grounds. The containers are made of hardy, dishwasher-safe plastic, and will hopefully catch on reasonably fast. Dining replaced all of its styrofoam containers with biodegradable products about a year and a half ago, and while biodegradable material is a big step up from styrofoam, our composting operation unfortunately cannot accept those to-go containers. This means that the biodegradable containers still end up in the landfill, where decomposition is virtually nonexistent.

While a reusable container means additional water needed for washing, it also means less spent on purchasing disposable items and less material added to the waste stream. I think moving away from a disposable mentality will generally appeal to students -- of course, the trick is getting them to remember to bring back their dirty container after it has been used.