Michigan Football Home Games to be Zero Waste Events
9/7/2017 12:14:00 PM | Football, Sustainability
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Michigan Athletics will strive for zero waste game days at Michigan Stadium, helping to move the University of Michigan closer to reaching its campus sustainability goals. Zero waste is the aspirational goal of diverting 90 percent of waste generated inside Michigan Stadium from the landfill through recycling and composting.
Michigan Athletics is partnering with the U-M's Office of Campus Sustainability and Sodexo, a food service management company, on the effort.
"The University of Michigan community has big ambitions for campus sustainability, and there is no bigger stage than Michigan Stadium. We are proud to extend our Zero Waste program to all home football games," says University of Michigan president Mark Schlissel.
Michigan Athletics began a phased approach to zero waste during the 2016 season by sourcing and testing the durability of compostable products and packaging, and by refining postgame cleanup operations to properly separate waste streams.
This season, new bins with signage showing examples of compostable and recyclable products were added around the stadium. Fans are encouraged to place items in the correct bin to avoid contaminating the recycling and composting streams. Landfill bins are no longer available on the concourse but remain in the restrooms and back of house areas.
"Creating more sustainable operations and engagement opportunities for fans in one of the nation's largest football stadiums will not only reduce waste in our stadium but also have a cultural impact on our campus and beyond," says Rob Rademacher, Executive Senior Associate AD and Chief Operating Officer for Michigan Athletics.
Each Sunday after a home game, the stadium will be cleaned and waste will be separated into compost, recycling and landfill bins to be taken to their respective locations for sorting and disposal.
A zero waste Michigan Stadium builds on the more than 20-year history of recycling gameday waste and supports the campus-wide sustainability effort known as Planet Blue.
The effort stems from recommendations to the president by a committee of students, faculty and staff to advance the university's progress toward its 2025 sustainability goals, specifically to reduce the amount of waste sent to the landfill by 40 percent below 2006 levels and to strengthen the culture of sustainability on campus.
For more information, visit the Zero Waste at Michigan Stadium page.
