Waste 360 write-up includes ASU Ditch the Dumpster efforts

Waste 360 assessed sustainable practices at Arizona State University in its How Sustainable Practices at Three U.S. Universities are Reducing Waste write-up last week. The piece included sustainability practices at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville and University of Colorado Boulder but led with ASU’s Ditch the Dumpster landfill diversion efforts. The annual recycling and donation period kicks off every Earth Day and continues through the first week of May.

ASU this year partnered with local organizations and nonprofits, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Epic Thrift and Goodwill. The groups distribute Ditch-the-Dumpster items to Arizona families in need.

Recyclable and reusable items collected last year during Ditch the Dumpster topped more than 157,580 pounds and included everything from hangers and lamps to electronics and unopened, nonperishable food.

Since Ditch the Dumpster began in 2009, ASU students have diverted nearly 942,100 pounds of landfill waste.