Greening Your Office

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

RESOURCE GUIDE

I only feel angry when I see waste. When I see people throwing away things we could use.- Mother Teresa

FOOD • Serveyourselfonlyasmuchasyouknowyou’ll

eat—youcanalwaysgetseconds!

• Consideronemeatlessdayperweek.

40 calories of fossil fuel energy go into every 1

calorie of U.S. feed lot beef, while 1 calorie of

plant-based protein only requires 2.2 calories of

fossil fuel. If the population of the United States

went meatless every Monday for a year, 12 billion

gallons of gasoline would be saved.

• Buyorganicandlocalwhenpossible—CORV

Local Food Guide .

• EatintheHoffMarketplaceandtrytoavoid

carryingout—it’sagreatwaytorelax,meet

people,andusere-useabletableware.

• CompostyourfoodscrapsattheNEXUS

Community Garden.

PAPER • Onlyprintwhat’snecessaryanddoublesideyour

printingwheneverpossible.

• Makethepointsizeandmarginssmallerinyour

documentstoreducethenumberofprintouts.

• SendPDFsbyemailinsteadofprintoutsorjust

printalimitednumberofcopiestoshare.

• Purchaseofficesupplieswiththehighest

postconsumerwastecontentaspossible:Office

Depot Greener Office Products; Staples

EcoEasy Product Line.

• Purchaserecycledcontenttablewareforevents:

Clovernook Center for the Blind; Park + Vine:

Cincinnati’s Green General Store.

• Tiredofjunkmail?Gotowww.ecocycle.org/

junkmail to“stopthejunk”.

• Don’toverprint:findouthowmanypeopleneed

toreceivewhatyouarehandingout.

Reduce!

POWERSTRIPS are a great way to reduce energy use. Plug appliances, lamps, computers, etc. into the same strip and flip the switch at night or when you’re away!

WATER• Onlywashfullloadsofdishesandclothes.

• Takeshorterandfewershowers.

TRANSPORTATION• Walktoworkorrideabike.

• Considercarpoolingwithacolleagueevenjust

onedayperweek.

• ConsidertheMetroasanoption:“Trip

Planner”.

HEATING & COOLING• Setthermostattothehighest/lowestcomfortable

setting(78degreeshotmonths,65degreescold

months).

• Usefanstocirculateair.

LIGHTING• Turnoffunnecessaryanddecorativelighting.

• Startasystemandpostsignstoturnlightsoff

whenspacesareunoccupied.

• Couldnaturallightdo?

APPLIANCES• Unplugappliances(toaster,microwaves,coffee

makers,washers,dryers)whennotinuse.

• Makesurecomputersandcopiersentera

low-power“sleep”modeafter15minutesof

inactivity.

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Reuse! Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without.- Proverb

PAPER & PLASTIC BAGS• Onlytakeadisposablebagifyoureally,truly

needone.

• Reusethemasgarbagebagsortocarrythings

morethanonce.

• Takeyourownre-usablebagstothestore.

• Rinseout,wash,anddryziplockbagsandreuse

overandover.

WATER BOTTLES• Refillanywaterbottlecountlesstimesinsteadof

justtossingitafterthefirstuse.

After all, did you know that up to 40% of bottled

water in the U.S. and Canada is sourced from

municipal tap water anyway?

• BuyaNalgeneorsteelre-usablebottleandrefill

itoften.

CONTAINERS • Useplasticorglasscontainerstostoreleftoversor

topackyourlunch.

• Glasspickleorpeanutbutterjarscanbecome

great,uniquedrinkingglasses.

• Youcanevenbringyourowncontainerwhen

yougoouttoeattoavoidstyrofoam.

PAPER• Usetheothersideofprintedsheetswhen

documentsarenotinthefinalstages.Alwayshavea“onesidegood”stackreadytoloadyourprinter.

• Cutscrapsofpaperandusethemasnotesinsteadofpost-its.

• Avoidpaperproductsasmuchaspossible:useclothtowelsinsteadofpaper,useceramicmugsinsteadofpaperorstyrofoamcups.

GREAT LOCAL RESOURCES

EatingLocal• 2010CentralOhioRiverValleyLocalFoodGuide.

(www.eatlocalcorv.org)

ShoppingGreen• Park+Vine:Cincinnati’sGreenGeneralStore.

(www.parkandvine.com)

PublicTransport• MetroBusSystem(www.sorta.com)-seethe

TripPlannersectionofthesitetoplanyournext

outingfromstarttofinish.

XUEfforts• XavierSustainabilityWebsite(www.xavier.edu/

green)

• CampusRecyclingCoordinator:StacyDecker

(deckerr@xavier.edu)

• UniversityCommitteeco-chairs:DaveLococo

(lococod@xavier.edu)andKathleenSmythe

(smythe@xavier.edu)

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Just as we cannot blame others for destroying the environ-ment, so we cannot look to others to protect the environ-ment. Responsibility for both begins at home.- Paul Griss

DIDYOUKNOW..?

• Ohio’srecyclingindustryannualsalesreached$22.5billion.

HOW?

Inoffices...• Bluebin—putanyrecycleable(seenextpage)in

thebluebininyouroffice,justbesuretoemptybeveragescontainersfirst.CallPhysicalPlantforanadditionalbinifneeded(x3151).

AroundCampus...• Batteries—depositintubeoutsideofthe

BookstoreinGSC.• CellPhones&PrinterCartridges—GSCdeposit

binssupportAlternativeBreaks,sodropthemin.

Off-Campus• RecycleBin—CallNorwoodDept.ofPublicWorks

(513)458-4615orCityofCincinnatiRecyclingProgram(513)591-6000torequestabin.

Recycle!

Occursfor3weekseverySpringandit’s

atoolforXaviertobenchmarkonwaste

reductionincomparisonandcompetition

withover500otheruniversities.Beonthe

lookoutatthestartofWintersemesterand

let’shelpXmoveupinthestandings!

WHY?

EnvironmentalBenefits• Conservesenergy

-Recycledpaperuses40%lessenergy.-Recycledplasticuses70%lessenergy.-Recycledaluminumuses95%lessenergy.

• Savesnaturalresources—recyclingonetonofofficepapersaves24trees!

• Reducespollution—thenationalrecyclingrateof30%reducesgreenhousegasemissionsbyasmuchasremovingasmanyas25millioncarsfromtheroad!

ReduceDependence&ImproveEconomy• Intheyear2001,HamiltonCountyresidents

diverted35,900tonsofmaterialfromthelandfillbyrecyclingathome.Ohio’srecyclingindustryannualsalesreached$22.5billion.

• Therecyclingindustrysupports4.3%ofthejobsinOhio.Recyclingsupports3,177businessestablishmentsinOhio,employing98,302people.

• TheaveragewagepaidbyOhio’srecyclingindustryis$36,600.

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RECYCLEMANIA!

Recycling Bin Do’s & Don’ts

ACCEPTABLE ITEMS

UNACCEPTABLE ITEMS✘ Plasticbags

✘ Soiledpizzaboxes

✘ Napkins

✘ Plasticfoodcontainers#3-#7(suchas

buttertubsandyogurtcontainers)

**Remove all lids and tops**

✘ Styrofoam

✘ Soiledpaperplates

✘ Styrofoameggcartons

✘ Anythingwithfoodresidue

✔ Newspaper

✔ Officepaper

✔ Junkmailandenvelopes

✔ Cardboard(Breakdownto3’x3’)

✔ Paperboard(CerealBoxes)

✔ Brownpaperbags

✔ Magazines

✔ PlasticBottlesandJugs#1-#7(w/

small“mouths”only)

✔ Aluminumandsteelcans

✔ Emptyaerosalcans

✔ Glassbottlesandjars

✔ Non-soiledpizzaboxtops

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Nothing “goes away”; it is simply transferred from place to place, converted from one

molecular form to another, acting on the life processes of any organism in which it be-

comes, for a time, lodged. One of the chief reasons for the present environmental crisis

is that great amounts of material have been extracted from the earth, converted into

new forms, and discharged into the environment without taking into account that “ev-

erything has to go somewhere.” The result, too often, is the accumulation of harmful

amounts of material in places where, in nature, they do not belong.

- Barry Commoner, Closing the Circle

Xavier University has a long history of responsible stewardship, resulting in such standard practices as:

At Xavier...Did You Know?

SO WHAT CAN YOU DO?5 EASY THINGS YOU CAN DO TO GREEN YOUR OFFICE:

ISXAVIERTHEREYET..?Well,noandweneedYOUtojointhemovementtocontinueshapingasustainableculturehereoncampus.So,whatcanyoudo?

Bring the Campus Sustainability Plan (CSP) to life in your area...• ReadtheCSPExecutiveSummary.• Read the entire CSP.• MeetwithyourUniversitySustainabilityCom-

mitteeliaisontolayoutgoals,objectives,andatimeline.

• LeadyourareainimplementationbasedontheCSPandyourvision.

Encourage faculty, staff, and student participa-tion in personal as well as structural change.

Attend the ER/S Lecture Seriesduringthe2010-2011onEcologyandSustainabilitywithaspecialfo-cusonGreenUrbanism.Visit:http://www.xavier.edu/ers/Lecture-Series.cfm

• Ice-basedbuilding-coolingsystemsetuptorunatnight,whenenergyuseischeaper.

• Sensingvalvesinrestroomsinkstoconservewater• Energymanagementsystemstoturnofflights

whennooneisaround.• Replacementofwindowsandroofs(asneeded)

withenergy-efficientmodels.• Acentralutilityplanttoservemanybuildings,

ratherthansingle,in-buildingunits.• Useoffluorescentlightbulbsthatuse75percent

lesselectricity.• Small,fuel-efficientvehiclesforphysicalplantuse.

• Energy-efficientwashersindorms.• University-widerecycling,includingrecyclingbins

inalldormroomsandcellphone,battery,andprintercartridgerecyclingintheGallagherStu-dentCenter.

• GreenSeal-certifiedcleaningproductsthrough-outthecampus.

• ContractswithChartwells,anenvironmentallyresponsiblefoodserviceprovider.

• NEXUSCommunityGardentoencouragelocalfoodproductionandconnectiontooneanotherandtheearth.

1. Havearecyclingbinandrecycleall

acceptableproducts.

2. Thinkbeforeprintingemailsorsend

PDFsbyemail.

3. Printdoublesidedwhenpossibleand

useoldpaperforprintingdraftsorcut

upforscrapsfornotesinsteadofpost-

its.

4. Buygreenofficeproductsincluding

recycledcontenttablewareforevents

and100%post-consumerwastepaper.

5. Bringyourownreusablemugand

silverwarefromhome.

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