Shared waste-sorting stations expand to more campus buildings

To help Stanford reach its rapidly approaching goal of becoming zero waste by 2030, the university is continuing to roll out the Zero Waste Building System, which places shared waste, recycling, and composting stations in workspaces on the Stanford campus.

The system, which is already in place at Stanford Redwood City and about 50% of the Stanford campus, makes it easy for people to sort their waste properly for maximum diversion from landfill. It does not affect student residences, which already use a similar system.

Kristin Parineh, director of the Office of Sustainability, said the system is part of a broader effort to improve Stanford’s waste management infrastructure in support of its zero waste goal.

“We’re providing the support system – the foundation – so that everybody on campus has convenient and equal access to recycling and composting when getting rid of their waste,” Parineh said.

Over the years, Stanford has made major improvements in how it collects and disposes of waste materials. Increased recycling, composting, and reuse collection, have helped move the university closer to zero waste, which is defined as 90% diversion from landfill. But Julie Muir, the zero waste systems manager in the Office of Sustainability, said that there is still room for more progress.

“Stanford’s diversion rate has remained in the 60 to 65% range for almost two decades,” Muir said. “We have done the research to identify what it will take to achieve our targets, and we are implementing the changes to help get us there.”

What to know

The Zero Waste Building System is one of those changes. Under the system, individuals are asked to dispose of their waste at shared, conveniently located, waste stations with color-coded bins for recycling (blue), compost (green), and landfill (black), as well as space for flattened cardboard. Custodial staff will service these stations and not deskside trash and recycling bins. Individuals who choose to keep deskside trash and recycling bins can properly sort their waste at the shared stations.

“This program is designed for offices,” Muir said. “Wherever there is a desk where someone works, that person should use a centralized collection point.”

The system was first piloted at the Stanford Redwood City campus in 2019 and again in 2021 in eight buildings (later expanded to 26) on the Stanford campus, producing impressive results. In pilot buildings, recycling rates increased between 29 and 44%, getting those buildings close to the zero waste (90% diversion) target. Since its pilot, Stanford Redwood City has successfully used the shared waste stations. The transition to the system on the Stanford campus began in Fall 2022 and will continue in phases, with accompanying educational and outreach efforts to support the campus community.

“In addition to reducing the amount of waste sent to landfills and greenhouse gas emissions, the new waste system on campus is much more clear and straightforward,” said Justin Richard, project specialist for Facilities & Hospitality at the Graduate School of Business (GSB), where the shared stations have already been deployed. “Having the universal blue, green, and black colors has made it easier for our community to properly dispose of their waste.”

Muir said she is grateful to the early adopters of this program on the Stanford campus, including Athletics, School of Education, GSB, Student Affairs, IT, School of Medicine, child care centers, SLAC, and the Doerr School of Sustainability.

The Office of Sustainability will roll out the system throughout the rest of the Stanford campus over the next 12 months.

Measuring success

The Office of Sustainability has conducted a waste characterization study to better understand what type of waste Stanford sends to landfills and found that 62% of that material is recyclable or compostable. That means that as the Stanford community improves its ability to properly sort waste, the university could make significant strides towards zero waste. While upgrading the waste infrastructure is a necessary first step, Parineh said that individual participation is key to the success of the program.

“First, we want to reduce as much waste as possible from coming to campus, reuse it to the extent possible, then make it as easy and convenient as possible for the Stanford community to participate by sorting their waste into the proper waste stream, because it will take our collective effort to reach zero waste,” she said.

To track progress and measure diversion rates for each building, the Office of Sustainability uses an app to record how full dumpsters are when serviced. The app sends out alerts that identify when, where, and what types of contamination occur in real time so that the Office of Sustainability staff can support the campus community in improving its waste habits. Custodial partners also provide feedback on the amount of waste that comes from each building.

Infrastructure improvements

The Zero Waste Building System is part of Stanford’s broader effort to improve and modernize its waste management infrastructure. For several decades, Stanford has contracted with Peninsula Sanitary Services Inc. (PSSI) to haul waste from campus. Seeing a need for improvement, Muir and her team rewrote the terms for a new contract and put it out to bid with potential waste haulers.

“We decided to continue our great relationship with PSSI, and were able to achieve several wins for our zero waste goals in the new contract, which starts Sept. 1,” Parineh said.

The new contract includes trucks equipped with cameras and other technology to help drivers safely navigate campus, as well as monitors that record materials poured into truck hoppers to identify items that don’t belong. The contract also includes new agreements that will send Stanford’s waste to some of the best processing facilities in the state. These agreements not only increase the likelihood that material from Stanford gets recycled and composted, but also include enhanced requirements for reporting on how that material is handled and where it goes.

“By implementing this new contract, we’re putting the foundation and infrastructure in place to support zero waste. In the months ahead, success will be dependent on our community’s willingness to reduce waste and participate,” Parineh said.

For more information about Stanford’s sustainability efforts, visit the Office of Sustainability.