Story co-written/produced with Jessica Stephens and Graylon Turner.
Recycling is a complicated process. It can be difficult to know what to recycle and where to take it. Alpha Phi Omega (APO) Pi Delta found out just how difficult recycling is when participating in the Trex plastic film recycling challenge.
APO held a donation table on the UC lawn on March 31 from 1-3 p.m. for students to drop off plastic film materials. The soft plastics donated included plastic film like grocery bags, bubble wrap, clean bread/cereal/produce bags, water bottle case wrappings, plastic labels, and Ziplock or other types of plastic storage bags.
The co-ed fraternity was participating in a recycling challenge from Trex, a wood alternative manufacturer based in Winchester, VA.
“Our chapter developed this project to build sustainability efforts in the community,” said Christine Robbins, vice president of APO.
Different schools compete against each other to collect the most plastic film. The winner of the challenge receives a bench made from fake wood created from soft plastics from Trex. According to Robbins, this bench would have been donated to the community.
“This is important to APO because we enjoy partaking in a variety of opportunities to be able to make an impact in the area,” says Robbins.
APO’s goal was to collect 500 lbs of plastic for the challenge. However, they ran into some issues, such as not being able to weigh the plastic collected.
“Unfortunately, in the zaniness of the semester, it doesn’t look like we’ll be able to meet our goal this time around. However, we’re still excited to make a positive impact on the local environment!,” said Robbins in an email.
Since the fraternity was unable to meet their original goal, they are using the plastic collected for a different project.
“APO will be using all the film to create plarn mats to support the homeless community,” said Robbins. “The products made will be donated to a local nonprofit as we get closer to completing the work.”
Recycling is important to the WCU community. Recycling on campus began as early as the 1970s with WCU’s food waste collection program. This program expanded in 1998 as WCU began collecting other recyclable materials such as paper, metal, aluminum, and cardboard.
In a Zoom interview, Chief Sustainability Officer and Director of Sustainability & Energy Management Lauren Bishop talked about the importance of recycling and the benefits of taking the time.
More from the interview, check out the video below!
“You look at it as an avoidance cost; it’s something that you have to deal with. It’s the cost of doing business, but the more effective your waste reduction program is, the more money you will save,” said Bishop.
Not only is it better for the environment, but it also reduces the $64 per ton tipping fee for transporting Jackson County waste to Homer County, Georgia since we have no landfill and we are taking materials from our waste to a recycling center.
Below are slides from Bishop’s Trash Talk presentation that she gives to students.
Although Jackson County lacks an official landfill, there are several recycling locations dispersed throughout the county.
For more information about APO’s current and future projects, check out their Instagram: @apo_wcu.
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