Recycling at Hollins

In the fall of 2006, Hollins University partnered with Roanoke County to establish the first county recycling site. Prior to this partnership, Hollins collected only mixed paper for recycling and the county had no recycling program. The partnership allowed Hollins to begin to recycle aluminum, newspaper, and #1 and #2 plastic in addition to the mixed paper program. Residents of Roanoke County are encouraged to bring their recycling to the collection bins on the Hollins campus for disposal.

To highlight recycling on campus, Hollins holds an annual "Battle of the Bins" contest at the beginning of every academic year. Students, staff, faculty, and others join together to paint the recycling bins with their own imaginative designs. Bins are judged and the top three designs win small cash prizes. The Battle of the Bins has promoted recycling on campus, created a sense of community around recycling, and the campus declares itself a recycling community with individually designed and painted recycling bins in every building.

Green Cleaning Products

On the recommendation of the Environmental Advisory Board, Hollins University instituted a policy of purchasing only Green Seal Certified Cleaning Products® whenever possible. Green Seal evaluates products based on a "life-cycle approach to ensure that all significant environmental impacts of a product are considered, from raw materials extraction through manufacturing to use and disposal." Use of certified products thereby reduces toxic pollution, conserves resources and habitats, and protects the health of service staff. Since the fall of 2007, all cleaning products with the exception of our bathroom disinfectants are green seal certified. We see this purchasing policy as a direct outcome of our institutional commitment to promote sustainable practices.

Reference: http://www.greenseal.org/certification/standards.cfm

Cleaning products used on campus:

Cleaning Activity	Product Name	Company
General cleanser	Stride Citrus HC Neutral Cleaner** Alpha HP Multi-Surface Cleaner**	Johnson Wax Professional
Washroom care	Crew: Bathroom cleaner and scale remover**	Johnson Wax Professional
Glass cleaner	Glance: Non-ammoniated glass cleaner**	Johnson Wax Professional
Floor care	Stride Citrus Neutral Cleaner** Freedom SC floor stripper for waxing**	Johnson Wax Professional
Bathroom handsoaps	Reliable GM Green Choice Luxury Handwash**	Reliable Brand Co.
Disinfectant	Alpha HP Bathroom Disinfectant and Cleaner**	Johnson Wax Professional
** Green Seal Certification

 

E-Waste Recycling

Electronic waste is becoming a mounting global problem. In the United States alone there are over 500 million obsolete computers, 130 million cell phones which are thrown away each year, as well as millions of other unwanted electronic devices (TV's, printers, faxes, etc…). When thrown away, these electronic devices can leak toxic chemicals (e.g. lead, cadmium) into the environment. Eighty percent of the e-waste that is recycled is sent overseas to developing countries where impoverished workers, including children, work in unsafe conditions smashing leaded glass tubes, breathing lead solder fumes and melting plastics with toxic flame retardants. Many of these toxic compounds are then dumped into rivers or piled into mountains of e-waste scrap.

In order to address this growing problem, Hollins hosted and carried out three-day statewide recycling events in 2007 and 2008 to encourage Virginians to properly recycle their old electronic devices. That effort resulted in the collection of 831,579 pounds of e-waste at the Hollins University campus and three other Virginia universities (University of Richmond, Virginia Tech, and Old Dominion University). On its own, Hollins far surpassed its original goal of collecting 200,000 pounds of e-waste by collecting 367,259 pounds (44% of the total). The e-waste that was collected was sent to MeTech Corporation in Massachusetts where the valuable materials were harvested and recycled in safe conditions.

Hollins provided businesses, schools, and households in western Virginia the opportunity to recycle their old computers, televisions, cell phones, and other electronic devices at no cost during the second annual Hollins E-Waste Recycling Event.

Sustainable Initiatives / Practices / Accomplishments

1. Replaced incandescent bulbs with compact florescent (ongoing since 1990's)
2. Replaced toilets and showers with low flow options (ongoing since 1990's)
3. Started incorporating recycled paper products (2000), and replacing custodial chemical products (2003), continuing to use green seal approved products
4. Incorporated golf carts into university fleet for use by maintenance, information technology, etc. (2002)
5. Developed campus and neighborhood recycling program with Roanoke County (2005)
6. Installed front-loading washing machines (2005)
7. Encouraged student-initiated community garden (spring 2005)
8. Joined Orion Grassroots Network as Educational Affiliate (November 2005)
9. Created new Environmental Studies major (2005)
10. Developed energy conservation guidelines for the campus to demonstrate institutional commitment and encourage campus and individual participation in reductions (January 2006)
11. Supported student efforts to create a bicycle co-op (2006)
12. Confirmed Board of Trustee commitment to sustainability (March 2006)
13. Formed group to develop charge and scope of responsibility for an environmental advisory board (April 2006) and appointed first Environmental Advisory Board at Hollins (June 2006)
14. Worked with dining services to encourage the purchase of local products and composting (ongoing)
15. Educated faculty on sustainability and paperless classrooms (2006)
16. Educated employees on energy origins, use, and opportunities for reducing (2006)
17. Supported local C2C housing project (Cradle to Cradle sustainable)
18. Celebrate Earth Day with campus activities and participation in Roanoke events (annually)
19. Included environmental and cultural sustainability as priorities in strategic plan (March 2006)
20. Became an affiliate of Roanoke Valley Cool Cities Coalition (October 2006)
21. Reused compromised trees and rocks in conjunction with Beale Garden renovation as well as introduction of more native plants (2006)
22. Placed 108 acres in conservation easement (2006)
23. Produced directory of green businesses in Roanoke Valley (2006)
24. Moved to default double-sided multi-function printers (October 2006)
25. Installed energy efficient boiler system (February 2007)
26. Replaced old window air conditioners with energy efficient units (July 2008)
27. Created energy awareness with "Turn out the Light" signs placed above light switches around campus (2007)
28. Supported global climate change film festival and biodiesel workshop (May 2007)
29. Signed American University and College President's Climate Agreement (May 2007)
30. Established a policy that all new campus construction will be built to at least the U.S. Green Building Council's LEED Silver Standard or equivalent (May 2007)
31. Adopted an energy-efficient appliance purchasing policy requiring purchase of ENERGY STAR certified products in all areas for which such rating exist (May 2007)
32. Completed Hollins' carbon footprint for academic years 2002-03, 2006-07 (2007)
33. Developed a carbon model which will be used to evaluate carbon reduction initiatives (2007)
34. Hosted e-waste community recycling events (2007, 2008). 400,000 lbs of e-waste was collected from the Roanoke community at the Hollins site with a total of 800,000 lbs statewide in 2007
35. Established a partnership with RIDE Solutions to encourage faculty, staff, and commuting students to take advantage of carpooling options (fall 2007)
36. Initiated efforts to include environmental focus in student orientation events (started 2008)
37. Surveyed students and faculty/staff on energy use patterns on campus
38. Incorporated sustainability information and activities into first-year orientation events (2008, 2009)
39. Created student supported recycling program on campus (2007)
40. Initiated collaborative recycling efforts with Roanoke County
41. Purchasing of 30% recycled paper (2009)
42. Hosting Green Roundtable — monthly lunchtime discussions open to campus community (2009)
43. Obtained funding through grant and donor support to purchase electric meters for individual buildings on campus (2009)
44. Approved student-initiated Green Fee of $5 per semester for all students beginning fall 2009. Funds will be used to support efforts toward a more environmentally-friendly campus (spring 2009)
45. Developed and endorsed a Strategic Plan for Carbon Neutrality recommending a target date for carbon neutrality of 2040 and 15% reduction of greenhouse gases over the next five years with an annual goal of 3% (May 2009)
46. Participated in Recyclemania, a friendly competition and benchmarking tool for college and university recycling programs to promote waste reduction activities to their campus communities (spring 2009)
47. Initiated "trayless" dining in the cafeteria (fall 2009)
48. Participated in conference on energy conservation hosted by duPont Foundation (spring 2009)
49. Increased types of materials that are recyclable on campus including CFLs batteries, and cell phones (2009)
50. Installed system to capture rainwater from the roof of Turner for the purposes of watering Beale Garden (2009)
51. Revised general campus policies (purchasing, travel and entertainment, and car rental) to include references to institutional commitment to sustainability (spring 2009)
52. Revised institutional guidelines on conservation and sustainability (summer 2009)
53. Developed a Computer Power Savings Policy to reduce unnecessary power consumption (spring 2009)
54. Hosted environmental speakers including Nobel Prize winner Susan Solomon as part of women in science conference (March 2009); author Barbara Kinsolver in conjunction with RAIL Solution (May 2006); author/economist, Brian Czech, and author/professor of environmental studies at Oberlin College, David Orr as part of Sowell Lecture Series (September 2006); activist/author Vandana Shiva (April 2005)
55. Adapted the dishwasher in Moody dining hall allowing the water used to cool the machine when it is operating, to be recycled to the chilled water pipes in Moody and on to the cooling tower and be used as make-up water for the chiller. This will reduce the usage of water needed for make-up water in the chiller and save several thousand gallons of water annually from entering the sewer system (summer 2009)