Dumpsters have disappeared from all over the Dickinson campus, and they’re being replaced with smaller recycling bins.

Over the summer, Dickinson College outsourced their recycling system to the company “Penn Waste” based in Manchester, Pennsylvania. This change is one of many that Dickinson has made in the past years with a focus on sustainability.

Major changes can be seen to the recycling system in the large green and yellow recycling bins around campus. These recycle-only dumpsters work for “co-mingled recycling,” Eric Vorodi, director of Grounds & Landscaping explained described in a summer email to the Dickinson community. This means that all types of recyclables should be placed in these bins, including cardboard, glass, paper, metal and plastic.

This change is already receiving praise throughout campus. Nam Nguyen ’18, environmental studies major, thinks the change should lead to more recycling on campus.

“I’d assume that the big (landfill) dumpsters would only encourage people to throw everything inside, so having smaller bins with specific purposes should make people more likely to actually sort out their trash instead of just blindly throwing everything into one bin,” he stated.

Another student, Nicholas Gabuzda ’18, was also inspired by the changes.

“I think it’s great that the college is trying a different approach to recycling/waste removal. I’m interested to see if it will be successful in the long term and how students will respond to it.”

Nathaniel Rines ’19 particularly likes the new designs of the recycling bins. “This new system feels more organized to me, especially considering that a lot of the dumpsters last year had open tops, which allowed the wind to carry recycling,” he remarked.

Although these recycling updates mean significant reforms, several people on campus are pushing for more changes.

Stephanie Czmar ’19 said, “I think that the school should push to encourage recycling in places with high levels of plastic consumption such as the Union Station and the Quarry in ways like providing larger receptacles. I believe that the school should aim to reduce plastic consumption at these locations by investing in more reusable utensils such as cups and containers.”

Rines also believes the different bins could be labeled more clearly, “I wish the recycling was a little more clearly marked to avoid confusion with the trash though,” Rines said.

Penn Waste has similar sustainable ideas as Dickinson as outlined on the company’s website. According to the site, Penn Waste aims to provide a green and sustainable future for generations to come while supporting children’s education and local business. Their new 96,000 square foot facility produces 35 tons of recyclables per hour and 81,000 tons of materials each year.

If anyone has any issues regarding the recycling changes, Facilities Management urges them to reach out, at [email protected].