Only 20 percent of the recyclable products on Ball State University's campus make it to the recycling bin, said Mike Planton, associate director for landscape and environmental management.
As an incentive for students to help save the planet, a nationwide competition called Recycle Mania will award a university with a trophy for its recycling efforts.
Ball State's Students for a Sustainable Campus and the Environmental Action Team are sponsoring the contest, which began Jan. 28 and will end April 7. Recycle Mania began in 2001 as a friendly competition between Ohio and Miami of Ohio universities. It has since grown to more than 200 participating universities and colleges.
"Ball State is the only school in Indiana participating, which is a shame," Planton said. "We want to throw a personal challenge down to IU, Purdue and maybe even Indiana State."
SSC President Nadia Roumie said her group was trying to get more students involved in recycling on campus.
"There's so much trash we get in the dining halls that can be recycled," Roumie said. "People just don't think about it."
Only the residence halls are participating in the competition, she said.
"Housing and dining have the lowest recycling rates," Planton said. "That's where the bulk of the population is going to get the most information."
Roumie said this is the second year the university has participated in Recycle Mania, and the SSC is trying to focus its efforts on a smaller group for the time being.
"Since it's still our first couple of years, we're just getting to learn how this works, so we're only working with the dorms," she said.
After hearing about Recycle Mania, Roumie and the former SSC president approached Planton to help coordinate the competition on campus, Roumie said. SSC placed posters around campus for Recycle Mania and has worked with hall directors on ways to get students more involved this year, she said.
"The first thing to do is make sure to put the stuff that is recyclable in the recycling bins," Planton said. "I can't recycle it if you don't give it to me. Think about what you actually have in your hand."
Roumie said last year SSC sponsored a contest between the residence halls on campus to involve the students more. The residence hall that collected the most recyclables was given a pizza party, she said.
"We're just looking to do better than we did last year," Roumie said. "We're just trying to get involved with the competition and let our campus know about it."
Universities can choose to participate in three competition categories: Grand Champion, Per Capita Classic and Waste Minimization. Ball State is participating in all three.
Grand Champion measures recycling rates, Per Capita measures pounds of recycled items per student and Waste Minimization measures the amount of waste per person.
The winning university in each category attends a national conference and receives a trophy, which is passed among the winners every year, Planton said.
The following are some items that do and do not count toward Recycle Mania. Unacceptable materials can still be recycled but will not count toward the competition. See recyclemaniacs.com for a complete list.
Acceptable recyclables:PaperBooksMagazines and newspapersPlastics #1-7Aluminum cansGlassSteel cansCardboard
Unacceptable recyclablesAppliancesElectronicsFood service organicsFurnitureIndustrial plasticsScrap metalScrap woodYard waste
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