GOAL: ZERO WASTE

Definition: 75% waste diversion rate from landfill by 2020 and a 95% waste diversion rate from landfill by 2030.

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METRICS

 

Help us reach our goal and support your local community by refusing single-use products, reusing products, reducing your waste stream, and recycling or composting products that you may not need anymore. 

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REDUCE & REUSE

Goal: Reduce your reliance on single-use products

DID YOU KNOW?

• Aluminum cans have far greater recycled content than other materials. Consumers recycle 50% of cans (only 30% of bottles).
• 17 million barrels of oil are used annually for U.S. plastic bottles.
• Glass bottles have 18 times the weight of cans (20% more transport fuel). Join us in getting the information out to friends and colleagues. Enjoy your favorite beverage, but choose a can as much as possible!

 

Alternatives to single-use products:

Single-Use Products	Alternatives
Plastic bottles (water, soda, juice, etc.)	Stainless Steel 16-20oz canteen
Paper coffee cups w/ plastic lids	Insulated Stainless 12-20oz thermos
Plastic straw	NO straw. Metal or paper Straw
Plastic to-go cups w/ plastic straws	Mason Jar w/metal or paper straw
Instant K-Cups	Compostable or reusable K-Cups or french press
Plastic cutlery	Wood compostable utensils, metal
Plastic toothbrush	Bamboo toothbrush
Plastic Ziploc bags/plastic wrap	Beeswax wrap
Bulk bin plastic bags	Mason jars or small paper bags
Plastic produce bags	Cotton bags

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For more alternatives to single-use items go to:

 https://www.goingzerowaste.com/blog/the-ultimate-list-of-zero-waste-swaps 

 

Water Bottle Refill Stations

In November 2014, with the support of SRJC Student Government, SRJC installed its first water bottle refill station. The refill station is located on the first floor of the Bertolini Student Center on the north side of the breezeway. This refill station diverts, on average, fills over 1,500 bottles/month with cool, filtered, tap water. Carry a reusable bottle with you and reduce your waste output.

Current Water Bottle Refilling Stations at Santa Rosa Campus:

• Outside Pioneer Hall/Book Store Entrance
• Inside Bertolini Student Center (North Ground Floor Entrance)
• Inside Tauzer Gym (West Side Entrance)

DID YOU KNOW?

• Americans use 89 billion plastic water bottles a year? Of those, only one in six is recycled.
• The recycled plastic is degraded during the recycling process making it only usable for composite materials such as fleece and plastic composite wood - so it's not actually removed from the waste stream; it's just delayed.

SRJC Reusables

The SRJC Bookstore stocks a wide array of eco-friendly products including:

• Reusable SRJC water bottles
• Reusable SRJC travel mugs
• Reusable SRJC bags as well as
• Locally made products (including organic Shone Farm goods) and products made of post-consumer content.

Go green while showing off your BearCub pride!

DID YOU KNOW?

• Fresh and Natural (campus food services) will give you $.25 off your drink for bringing your own mug.
• It is estimated that 14 billion coffee cups are thrown away each year and due to the polystyrene lining that is used to make them waterproof, they're not easily recyclable or compostable.

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COMPOST & RECYCLE

Goal: Divert waste from a landfill

Wherever they are available, we encourage you to use hand dryers and forego paper towels, eliminating waste. Some staff members have decided to start bringing personal hand towels to work in order to minimize the unnecessary waste from drying off hands. We love that initiative!!

DID YOU KNOW?

When you recycle at SRJC, you help to support SRJC!

• The water bottle refill station and the bicycle repair station wouldn't have been made possible without you recycling! CRV funds are collected from what has been recycled and goes directly to fund projects like these!
• Over 90 recycling receptacles are positioned at convenient locations around campus. Talk to your local waste hauler for more information on sorting trash. 

Compost	Recycle
Food Scraps:  Bread, grains, and pasta Coffee grounds and tea bags Dairy and eggs Fruits and vegetables Leftovers and spoiled food Meat (including bones)	Metal: Aluminum cans and steel Clean aluminum foil and trays
Plants:  Branches and brush Flowers and floral trimmings Grasses and weeds Leaves Tree trimmings (less than 4" in diameter and 4' long)	Plastic Containers: Bottles (leave caps on) Containers Clamshell Containers (cleaned) Cups Plastics numbered 1-7 on bottom
Soiled Paper: Coffee filters Greasy pizza boxes Paper plates without plastic/waxy liners Paper to-go containers without film plastic liners Soiled paper towels and napkins	Glass:  Glass bottles and jars
Other:  Hair, fur, feathers (non-synthetic) Wood: small pieces of lumber or sawdust from untreated wood only Wooden chopsticks and coffee stir sticks	Paper and Cardboard:  Paper Bags only Cardboard (non-waxed) Cereal boxes Office paper Egg Cartons (paper) Envelopes Juice or soy milk boxes with foil liner Junk mail and magazines Newspapers Packing paper Phonebooks Sticky notes Waxy paper milk or juice cartons Wrapping paper (non-metallic)

 

Hosting an event? Use our Zero-Waste Scorecard!

 Zero Waste Event Scorecard