University Housing and the Office of Sustainability’s Waste Reduction Services unit were awarded partial funding for a waste reduction initiative funded by the Georgia Environmental Protection Division. The funding will provide scales, software and training for Waste Reduction Service’s front-end loader trucks, which will allow housing to measure accurate weights of recycling and landfill content in our dumpsters. The scales can provide building-specific metrics on weight diverted from the landfill as a result of enhanced student-facing recycling efforts. This initiative aligns with University Housing’s commitment towards waste reduction through recycling education, infrastructure enhancements and assessment.  

UGA’s long-term vision is to apply these data, feedback and behavior change approaches developed in residential spaces to other areas of campus. The scales procured through this grant—in addition to benefiting University Housing during the scope of this project—will also track data across the entire Athens campus. Building-specific dumpster weights will allow the Office of Sustainability’s Waste Reduction Services unit to provide feedback to departments about their trash-to-recycling ratios to encourage change over time. 

University Housing already collaborates with the Office of Sustainability on a composting program, offering residents a convenient way to reduce the amount of waste sent to the landfill, while providing nutrient-rich compost to be used on campus and throughout the Athens community. 

Learn more about University Housing’s sustainability efforts at housing.uga.edu/about-us/sustainability.