On April 25th, the Zero Waste iCAP team met to discuss the State Farm Center Recycling (ZW011) recommendation and brainstorm on the Zero Waste iCAP summary report for the 22-23 FY.
Meeting minutes are attached.
On January 30th, the Zero Waste iCAP team met to discuss final thoughts on the finished tailgate recycling recommendation, the feasibility of a large scale composting program on campus, and current work with the Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC).
Meeting minutes are attached.
On December 8th, the Zero Waste iCAP team met to discuss a new approach to creating recommendations for next semester. During the meeting, the team created subcommittees based on aspects of the key priorities document and provided feedback on an environmental engineering sustainability project.
Meeting minutes are attached.
On November 7th, the Zero Waste iCAP team met to discuss DIA sustainability initiatives with Tim Knox and made edits on the Project 4 Less expansion recommendation to be submitted in the coming month(s).
Meeting minutes are attached.
On September 20th, the Zero Waste iCAP team met again to work on the Campus Sustainability Celebration slides and to review the ZW005 Water Bottle Survey.
Meeting minutes are attached.
iSEE Director, Madhu Khanna, responded in favor of the ZW007 Composting Strategies recommendation with the following message:
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Dear Morgan and Jen
iSEE is very supportive of discussing composting program expansion opportunities and we appreciate the submittal of this recommendation. We have established and supported the implementation of several compost tumblers on campus and participate in a Sustainable Land Management Committee to work on identifying potential compost opportunities at South Farms. This committee is currently working on establishing an outlet for composting manure with the intent of expanding to include campuswide organic waste, excluding the waste from Dining Halls as they already divert their organic waste through Grind2Energy Systems.
We have now had time to discuss the recommendation below in more detail. In the near term, we have initiated conversations to pilot a program between the Union and Urbana Landscape Recycling Center to assess demand and logistical details needed to support such a program. Many of the individuals included on the proposed committee membership list are included in these discussions, and progress will be continuously reported on the iCAP Portal. As you recommended, we are gathering these stakeholders to discuss composting. Because it is a large and complex issue, we are taking a less structured approach than a formal committee. We will reassess the launch of such a group as we move forward with the Union pilot project. Thank you again for your dedication to campus waste diversion.
Best wishes,
Madhu
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See the iWG assessment and transmittal of ZW007 Composting Strategies here.
See the submittal of ZW007 Composting Strategies here.
For future updates, please refer to the Large-Scale Food Waste Composting project.
On September 6th, the Zero Waste iCAP team met to review the Zero Waste iCAP 2020 chapter and to discuss team-related goals for the upcoming year.
Meeting minutes are attached.
Following review by the iCAP Working Group, the iWG recommends that the ZW007 Composting Strategies recommendation be transmitted to iSEE:
"Because these discussions are at the beginning stages in various formats and topics, the iWG recommends that iSEE collaborate with the Zero Waste iCAP Team to plan and host a discussion/symposium/workshop in FY23 to share knowledge about composting programs, efforts, and strategies for campus and the community. A review of known solutions from other places and an assessment of anticipated costs for composting strategies should be included, and include presentations from experts on best practices."
See the submittal of ZW007 Composting Strategies here.
Click here to read the "Our Campus Composts" case review of institutions that compost, per the Composting Council in 2018-2019.
The Zero Waste iCAP Team met on Thursday, March 31 to de-brief the Plastics Reduction Strategy discussion, review committee member research on the Adopt-a-Highway/Adopt-a-Drain and Composting Committee Recommendations, and begin discussion on amending the Campus Administrative Manual's Paper Policy. Meeting minutes are attached.
The Zero Waste iCAP Team met on Thursday, March 31 to de-brief the Plastics Reduction Strategy discussion, review committee member research on the Adopt-a-Highway/Adopt-a-Drain and Composting Committee Recommendations, and begin discussion on amending the Campus Administrative Manual's Paper Policy. Meeting minutes are attached.
The Zero Waste iCAP Team met on Wednesday, February 9 to discuss the several recommendations in the works, including: Plastic Reduction in vending machines, Composting Commitee, Adopt a Highway/Drain, Food Literacy Project, and Sustainable Receipt options. Meeting minutes are attached.
The Zero Waste iCAP Team met on Thursday, January 27 to finalize the recommendations drafted at the end of last semester, the Water Drinking Behavior Survey and the Water Filter System Tracking. The team also discussed several recommendations they intend to pursue this semester, including: Adopt-a-Highway program, Food Literacy Project, Composting Committee, P Card Training and Sustainable Receipt options. Meeting minutes are attached.
The Landscape Recycling Center tests for temperature, oxygen, and moisture monthly. They test for ph, metals, nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, and infectious bacteria in finished compost product annually. As food scrap makes its way through the process and we continue to test the final product, we will be able to observe any changes to these parameters.
True food circularity must include waste reduction on the agricultural and consumer sides. Don't miss this third iSEE Congress webinar on "Circular Food Systems," with Brian Roe, Van Buren Professor of Agricultural, Environmental, and Development Economics at Ohio State; and Tom Theis, Director of The Institute for Environmental Science and Policy, University of Illinois Chicago. Register here >>>
November 3, 12–1 pm • Zoom webinar
Julie Wurth • Institute for Sustainability, Energy, and Environment
"How Can We Reduce Waste from Agricultural and Food Systems?"
Roman Makhnenko explains that there are available funds from a SSC sponsored project that can be used to to buy a compost tumbler for the Newmark Civil Engineering Building. Additionally, Roman wants to discuss with Meredith where the tumbler should be emptied once it gets full.
Happy St. Patrick’s Day! In an effort to be more “green” today and every day, we now have a compost tumbler on the west side of the National Soybean Research Center, thanks to SSC funding. This is the first publicly-accessible compost drop-off on campus!
Please feel free to take advantage of this opportunity to sustainably dispose of your fruit/vegetable scraps (without stickers), tea bags, coffee grounds/filters, eggshells, shredded paper etc. While this 60-gallon compost tumbler is housed at the NSRC building, this drop-off opportunity is available to all. Simply unscrew either end of the tumbler and drop your items inside. Attached are several photos of the location and setup, as well as a list of the acceptable/unacceptable items.
The end-product will ultimately be used to fertilize a pollinator garden at NSRC. More details to come.
Meeting minutes for the Zero Waste SWATeam Meeting on 3/12 are attached. The agenda for the meeting is as follows:
The Zero Waste SWATeam met on Friday, 12 February to discuss the following:
Attached are the meeting minutes from the Zero Waste SWATeam on 12/18/2020. The following agenda items were discussed:
