U-M Close to Zero Waste Goal During First Half of Season
10/25/2017 1:38:00 PM | Football, Sustainability
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Halfway through the 2017 football home schedule, the University of Michigan athletic department has achieved an average diversion rate of 87.6 percent in its zero waste initiative at Michigan Stadium.
Michigan Athletics set out at the start of the season with an aspirational goal of zero waste. The industry standard for zero waste events is to divert 90 percent of waste from landfill, and Michigan has come close to hitting the mark all three games.
Michigan updated bins and signage throughout the stadium prior to the start of the season to help educate fans on where to place their waste. Following the home opener against Cincinnati on Sept. 9, the staff made a few operational changes to processes in order to improve the diversion rate for the second game against Air Force on Sept. 16.
Through three games the athletic department has diverted 30.6 tons of waste to either compost or recycling facilities, compared to just 4.34 tons to landfill.
Fans can continue to help Michigan Athletics get closer to the goal of 90 percent by placing items in the correct compostable or recyclable container as well as not bringing in outside waste inside the stadium gates. The waste totals include only waste collected inside the stadium gates.
After games are over, approximately 400 volunteers fill the stadium on Sunday mornings to sort the waste items in the stands into compost, recycle and landfill bags. Composted items are sent to the City of Ann Arbor Compost Center operated by We Care Organics, and recycle bags are sent to the Western Washtenaw Recycling Authority.
The zero waste initiative started in October 2015 when U-M president Mark Schlissel reaffirmed the university's commitment to sustainability with the announcement of new efforts to make progress toward its 2025 goals. In an effort to support the goal to reduce waste being sent to landfill by 40 percent by 2025, the athletic department started working on a plan to make game days in Michigan Stadium zero waste.
There are three home football games remaining in 2017. Michigan will host Rutgers for homecoming Saturday (Oct. 28) at noon and Minnesota the following Saturday (Nov. 4) at 7:30 p.m. The final home game will be Saturday, Nov. 25, when Ohio State visits the Big House for a noon kickoff.
