May 24, 2010

Another graduation weekend has come and gone, with families flocking to town for the commencement ceremony. For many students, it was time to say goodbye to CSUMB and to unwanted stuff.

Recycling intern Tristan Mansson-Perrone and a committee of volunteers helped them do just that, in a way that was environmentally friendly.

They organized CSUMB's first move-out waste diversion program. As students were moving out of their residence halls for the summer, they were urged to deposit reusable and recyclable items in large containers that dotted the campus.

The container positioned near the three residence halls in North Quad collected more than 1.125 tons of reusable items – everything from clothing to furniture to small appliances. The items were taken to the Last Chance Mercantile, a resale shop operated by the Monterey Regional Waste Management District in Marina, where they will be available to the public for purchase.

"We're still waiting on the numbers for the container by the Student Center, as well as the 11 20-yard dumpsters around campus, to get a good idea of the total amount diverted from the landfill," Mansson-Perrone said.

In addition, 23 barrels of clothing were collected from the residence halls and sent to Goodwill.

"That's a lot of reusable items diverted from the landfill," Mansson-Perrone said. "We have something to be proud of."

According to AS Environmental Senator Duane Lindsay, the student environmental committee is planning to work with the commencement committee next year to organize a zero-waste graduation.